Today we visited Stirling Castle and Ichmahome. Stirling Castle is in the most strategic location in all of Scotland, and most kings leading up to James VI lived there. Ichmahome is an island that is filled with magic (though that's only what I decided, not what's written in history) that used to house a monastery. The monastery is now ruins, but they were the most beautiful ruins I have ever seen.
First, the weather was awful today. The man running the boat at Ichmahome did point out that there's no such thing as bad weather, just the wrong clothing, though, and I suppose he's right. It just happened to be that none of us were exactly wearing the "right" clothes. Many girls were in leggings, tennis shoes, and jackets. I was wearing jeans, tennis shoes that acted a bit like sponges, and a less-than-waterproof-but-warm-when-dry coat. Definitely not ideal attire for rain and mud. However, it was still a magical experience being there, and I didn't even mind the damp and the mud after walking around the island for a bit.
But I'm getting ahead of myself. First was Stirling Castle. Or, more accurately, the coach ride there.
Our coach driver overheard our professors talking about The Battle of Bannockburn (a battle in 1314 in which Scotland beat the English), and he offered to drive us by the site of that battle because it would only add five minutes to our journey to the castle. Our professors jumped at that offer, and we got a spontaneous history lesson from Professor Talbot. He gets so excited about history and learning that I can't help but catch a bit of his enthusiasm.
The castle itself was beautiful. The interior was entirely remade to be like it would have been in the times of the kings of old. There were tapestries lining the walls, rugs on the floor, (fake) candles in the lights, (fake) food on the tables, etc. It was incredible. Not an I'd-like-to-live-here-someday incredible, but incredible. The view took my breath away, though.
We then hopped back on the coach and headed off to Ichmahome. It started raining pretty hard, but turned to a constant drizzle right before we got off the coach. The rain made everything smell amazing (except for the lake), but it, combined with the wind, made for a pretty cold group of girls. There was also only one boat and it fit twelve passengers, so we had to go over in several different shifts. I was lucky enough to be on the second one.
As soon as I got to the island the cold didn't matter. It was breathtaking, and completely fell in love. The island felt like something out of a fairy tale. It was magic, even if it wasn't really.
The church ruins were hidden behind trees, but as soon as you got halfway down the dock they started to come into view. I rounded the row of trees and heard myself gasp. The stones rising up were dark grey because of the rain, and they were covered in tiny green ferns and pink flowers. It looked like a place a princess could be found.
I took more pictures than I could ever use, and I wandered around the island with the silliest grin on my face. I felt like I could have been in a million different stories and then I realize that I was in my own which was even better. Also, my hair didn't even get frizzy, so you know there must have been some sort of magic there. The hair gods were kind until I got back on the coach and we headed for the hotel.
We (Amy, Chloe, Kathryn, Mary, and I) then warmed up a bit at the hotel and then headed out to find food. We found a delightful little Italian place called Bon Napoli. We ate, chatted, and enjoyed the company of each other.
After dinner we popped into Primark which is full of good deals and decent quality, but I don't like shopping so I sort of wander the aisles until other people want to leave. Tonight the first people in our group who wanted to move on were Amy and Chloe. There was a bookstore that Amy wanted to visit tonight and it closed at eight, so we made our way there.
I have decided that going into a bookstore with Amy and Chloe is even more dangerous than going into a bookstore by myself: they encourage me to buy books. So I walked out with two. I did talk myself down to that number, though. At one point I was carrying five and was looking for a sixth. But I stuck to two because one was free. And my library continues to grow. My carry-on suitcase is going to be quite heavy, I think. This makes ten books purchased since I've been here. But they're such happy things. I can't exactly say no all of the time. Books are good.
After the bookstore we hopped into Tesco and purchased candy for quite a cheap price. I decided to try some gummy candies I'd never had before, and they were good except for the Coke-flavored ones. But I think that's more a result of my not liking Coke than the candy being weird.
Then we went back to the hotel and I caught up with Sarah. It was her birthday today, so Caitlin and Kenna bought her a cake. They came into our room with it and started singing happy birthday. I turned to YouTube to find the most amazing rendition of Happy Birthday on the Internet, and Kenna suggested that I look up someone playing it on the bagpipes. I died. It was the most amazing thing, and we all had a good laugh (though it was a good video). We watched some Doctor Who (which is much better when you've been to England, I think) and now it's past our bedtimes. I think today was a pretty great day.
Stirling Castle
Not many people made their way over here, but the view was incredible.
Amy in the back, Chloe in the front
This man's tights
These tapestries were all duplicates. They were hand-woven by a team and they were depicting the story of the hunt of the unicorn. The unicorn was actually a representation of Christ.
Waiting for the boat to take us to the island.
The ruins on Ichmahome
These flowers were everywhere. It was beautiful.
Amy
This was right next to the former monastery.
And this is where I started to explore.
I found the trolls from Frozen. Just in case anyone was looking for them.
You can't really tell in the pictures, but it was so muddy. There were footprints from people who had gone moments before me that were filled with water. It was exciting, though :)
It looks kind of like an animal yawning. Like maybe an owl?
This was a wall lining one of the soggiest pathways. I wish I had thought to walk on top of it because my feet got soaked on this particular path. Ah well. Hindsight is always 20/20.
Another angle of the ruins
I don't actually know what this is, but I stumbled across it and found it possessing a certain charm.
This tree was like a fort. I wish I had had time to climb.
There were actually two boats, though only one was running. So we had one boat empty at the docks while we waited for the running one to come back.
Tap lessons with Ruby, James, and Hannah
I'm content. Life is good. And maybe bedtime is a good idea. Until tomorrow!
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