Okay, honestly, prior to my trip to Scotland a few years ago, everything I knew about it came from Trainspotting. This isn’t exactly inspiring, but the soundtrack was great and I did want to see the Loch Ness monster, so off I went. I wasn’t thinking about castles, but I should have been. It wasn’t thinking about some of the best Indian food in the U.K., though Glasgow’s known for it. I definitely wasn’t thinking about hotels in Edinburgh city centre with swimming pool–heck, I didn’t know such things existed in the bustling city–but now I know better.
So let’s get the obvious out of the way. All those things exist. Plus beaches. Who knew about Scottish beaches? Incredible! I went in early spring, when it was wintry and stark and beautiful, but I do occasionally regret missing them in summer. (Though hotel-with-pool is probably a better bet for serious swimmers). In any case, though, Scotland has an eerie beauty, the kind that makes you want to read mystery novels and shiver and take a lot of photographs.
Then there’s art. Scottish museums do not disappoint, offering everything from history and art to religion and science. There’s also food, something little vegetarian me had not considered as an option. But in cities, plus all those curry spots, I ate well.
Most important of all, there are kilts. If you want to see kilts in action, you can go to a Scottish wedding, or you can go to Edinburgh. (Or both!) While in Edinburgh, I toured a kilt factory, saw quite a few folks wearing them, and then I went to a CASTLE. I really can’t stress the castle enough. There was nothing Trainspotting-like, except for the access to awesome music.
For the record, I did go to Loch Ness. On the way I saw the cutest woolie sheep ever. Nessie, however, was shy.
