We’re exploring Scotland! (Ken’s birthday trip to the Highlands)

Heyyy no I haven’t forgotten about you don’t worry, it’s more like I haven’t had a spare 2 seconds to update you on everything happening in Glasgow! I’ve decided I’ll just update on actually eventful days and highlights rather than trying to fill you in on everything, I don’t think I have the time in the day to do things and write about them!

So today’s recap is going to be covering a day we spent a little while ago now in the Highlands of Scotland, which is one of the most magical places I’ve ever visited. There is a tour company called IST (International Student Tours) Scotland that Strathclyde have been promoting for a little while, and they run day trips and overnight trips to different parts of Scotland, many of which are pretty difficult to get to otherwise. I had booked 3 trips with them before I even arrived, and figured I would make friends who wanted to come too. And I was correct! During Freshers week I realised Leïla, Mckenna and Dani were quite literally just different versions of myself, and they were just as keen to see more of Scotland as I was. They booked tickets on the spot and we spent the rest of the week looking forward to the trip!

22/09

It was a crazy early start, mostly because I (stupidly) thought I had to look presentable. I don’t know why I thought that that was the case, especially when, working backwards, it meant being up at 5am. And I went to bed around 11pm the night before. A recipe for disaster, but I was determined to cook.

I actually woke up and got out of bed when the alarm went off, and wasted no time washing my face, then doing skincare and makeup. Hair was not happening today. It was probably going to be windy anyway. The only thing I did the night before which was helpful when I was in full zombie mode was picking out my outfit for the day (jeans and jumper, revolutionary). It felt extra bizarre to be up before the sun, and convincingly at that. It was very peaceful though. I loved being in my kitchen with no one bothering me, I could just potter around, making my breakfast and organising my lunch and snacks to take with me for the day. Watching the sunrise from my kitchen as I was munching on my breakfast was weirdly a highlight of the day, I’ll be glad when the days are shorter, and I can do that more often without the 5am catch.

Back in my room I got my bag packed, popped on my shoes and headed out. It wasn’t as cold as I thought it would be, and walking through the park with my headphones on in the soft morning fog was divine. I walked to the campus halls, around a 10-minute walk, and met Dani, Mckenna and Leïla outside. Dani was probably the worst-for-wear. Not that she’s never not adorable, but 7am Dani is definitely not entirely present in any scenario, we did have to lead her down the footpath towards our pickup point right outside the business school. And the day was extra extra special, because it was McKenna’s 21st! It lined up perfectly that this trip would double as a birthday excursion, much love to Ken, you’re just the best! I really hit the jackpot for friends over here, and Ken is so so special, I appreciate her putting up with (and enabling) my antics. Leïla was looking as chic as always, it truly seemed nothing would be able to ruffle her feathers. She was ready to go with plenty of energy and sarcasm to last the day. How much fun we were bound to have!

We made sure to all get on the same bus, and left around 7:30am. We were all ready for a nap, but or guide Joji didn’t agree with that idea. He is an angel, we all love Joji he was truly the best guide bless him. But at 7:30am with 6 hours sleep the last thing we were going to do was listen to his little intro. We would lock in later, but a nap in the bus was the only thing we were going to be participating in. We stopped at Glasgow Uni on the way to pick up some students from there, and off we went!

Our first stop was Loch Lomond, a beautiful Loch around 1 hour out of Glasgow. We stopped here for around half an hour, and got to walk the Loch’s shore and explore the adjacent village of Luss. This was our first stop in the Highlands (officially!) sometimes I forget Glasgow isn’t that far away from where the Highlands start, I feel like it should only be the Highlands in the highest part of the country. Nevertheless we had made it! The Loch itself was so cinematic, and though it wasn’t raining, the low cloud and chill of the morning suited the scene perfectly. It felt surreal to finally be exploring a new area of Scotland outside the city, and Loch Lomond was the perfect start. Walking through Luss back to the coach was also beautiful, we got to poke around the gorgeous little cottages, and wander the small streets. The town’s nestled between Lochs and a stunning shallow valley, I could’ve spent a whole day just soaking in the atmosphere here. But, places to be, things to see! We had several of these smaller stops during the day to break up the travel, so we had to get back on the road.

I couldn’t say how long we were on the bus for before we got to the second location, I’m pretty sure I slept most of the way. But I’ve been provided with photos of the scenery on the way from my girls so thank you for those contributions ladies! Saving the content out here. I was a bit annoyed at myself to have missed the scenery from this leg, but realistically, there wasn’t a way I could make it through the day without having a nap at some point, and I didn’t want to be sleepy during the main attraction of the day so I took a preventative strike early on. And to be honest, I think it worked out!

Our second stop for the day was absolutely breathtaking. The Three Sisters of Glencoe! I loved visiting here, even if only for the Bond filming location fun fact, but you didn’t have to be a movie nerd to enjoy this spot. Definitely the most picturesque stop of the day by far, and I was glad we had a little more time to really explore around the area. The Three Sisters are 3 formations within a deep valley near Glencoe. There’s lots of spots to pull over, and it was clearly a very popular spot for tourists like us. We wandered down from the coach, went on a little walk to the base of the Sisters, and explored the area. I must’ve put some good energy out into the world, because the weather was ridiculously perfect. Although I was silently hoping it would be overcast again, mostly because a highland environment looks the best in cloud, but the blue sky was a welcome (and rare) surprise I wasn’t going to take advantage of it. Even our bus driver Chris was surprised at how good the weather was, I saw him taking photos of the valley from the coach. And if Chris thought it was that special of a day, how could we possibly disagree!

We had so much fun exploring and walking around for around an hour or so. McKenna and I had the revelation of a Chappel Roan TikTok we just had to make with the guy playing the bagpipes on the side of the road (the most Scottish thing I could ever think of) and it turned out so well, the vision really came to life.

And back on the coach we go! (For some more bops, weirdly fun facts from Joji and another quick nap before our next stop).

The stop being very brief, only 15-20mins or so, and was the Commando Memorial. It was so interesting being around the Americans who didn’t know anything about ANZAC Day or anything like that, they were so confused as to why there were wreaths of poppies and Australian and NZ flags as well. I guess I never really processed that of course that’s not a thing in the US! I felt so smart actually being able to explain in to not only them, but many European students as well. And weirdly patriotic? Which isn’t a big Australian quality, but I do really appreciate we have a Remembrance Day and ANZAC Day, so it was cool to be able to share that, especially considering we do have very limited culture everywhere else.

The view from the Memorial itself is also really cool, so I’m sure that was also part of the reason why we stopped here on the way up to the main destination of the day, Inverness!

I’m pretty sure it was at least another hour from the Memorial before we arrived in Inverness, and we made it by early afternoon, perfectly in time for some lunch. We walked through the town itself, which featured the river running through the centre, leading you to the Loch… Loch Ness! This was another one of those surreal moments when I couldn’t believe I was actually there. Loch Ness had been on my list of places in Scotland to visit for so long, which I know isn’t that original, but it just seems like the quintessential Scottish location. With the Scottish tradition of storytelling and myths, going on a hunt for Nessie was simply a must for me. And of course I’m a big fan of Water Horse, which is such a beautiful film I just adore. And I know my Mum visited Loch Ness when she was in Scotland so it was the perfect spot for many many reasons.

We found a good spot right on the shore of the Loch to eat our lunch and keep an eye out for Nessie. I believe our conversation included how we were certain Leïla could beat her in a fight, and Dani was convinced there were in fact two monsters in the Loch, Nessie and her child. Biologically I’m not quite sure how that works out, although McKenna said the most McKenna- coded thing, that she would just tell everyone around her that she saw Nessie so then more people could have that special experience. See what I mean when I say my friends are angels?

It wouldn’t be a visit to Inverness without exploring the town itself, so we walked through the main street, stopping at a couple of souvenir shops and boutiques as we went. This was when I discovered the love of my life: Harris Tweed bags. These things were what my dreams were made of. Not kidding. Beautifully crafted leather and Scottish wool bags. From shoulder bags to wallets to backpacks they had everything, and were all stunning. I was completely in love. They had that really cool vintage influence to them that I love, with buckles on the front as closures instead of a zip, but still really sleek and timeless. Although I wasn’t ready to commit to one then and there, mostly because many shops sold them and I wanted to be able to look at a couple before I made up my mind, I had decided that one of these bags would be the Glasgow Exchange investment souvenir.

By the time we had walked through a good chunk of the town, we had to start making our way back to the coach to travel to the last couple of stops for the day.

We followed the perimeter of Loch Ness to reach a large rural pub, which I assume was also a heritage homestead to visit some highland coos! Joji bought some feed for us, and they pretty much sprinted over to say hello. I’ve not been the biggest cow fan, like sure they’re fine, but I’m not going to be obsessed. They’re just cows! But these coos were next level cute. And actually had some fun personalities, unlike WA’s dairy cows that just flop around all day. They wanted scratches and snacks and we were absolutely entirely in love with them. Although I had run into some wild highland coos unexpectedly in the Lakes, they definitely weren’t friendly, whereas these coos were pretty much oversized puppies. As soon as I’m rich enough to have a holiday home in Scotland, best believe there’ll also be enough land for a couple of highland coos.

Skipping back to the bus we were all suffering from bouts of cuteness aggression, before McKenna made the mistake of asking what the coos themselves were actually used for. Since they’re so cute and tourists want to see them I think we all kind of forgot they are cows after all. I said “Ken… they’re cows. You get beef from cows.” It was like I had just told a 5 year old Santa wasn’t real, and I was shunned into silence until the next stop.

The next stop being a little way up a hill, although I couldn’t give you many more details as to exactly how the drive was (it was time for another nap) and soon we arrived at Urquhart Castle, which is built right on the bank of the Loch. Unfortunately we didn’t have time to walk right down to the Castle itself, but our views of it from where the bus stopped were beautiful in its own right. We got the Castle, surrounding gardens, Loch, and the dramatic valley landscape either side. Unfortunately, there wasn’t all that much left of the castle itself, Scottish weather isn’t kind to unmaintained stone, but Leïla and I came to the conclusion that since we would both love to get married in a Castle, and this one could do both the indoor/outdoor wedding situation really well. Really great skylight, open living potential there.

Turns out our ‘last stop’ was actually still in Inverness, we just went to the other side of the Loch (which was a lot bigger than I expected it to be) and explored a different area of the town. This side was much less touristy, and felt more like the typical highland town I was expecting to experience. Unfortunately quite a lot of the places of interest were already closed as it was now late afternoon on a Sunday, but walking around and being silly with the girls was entertainment enough. We did find a café, and all got a hot chocolate, and found the town’s church, a cool bridge, a beautiful old bookshop, and their necropolis. I don’t know what it is about Scottish towns, but there’s a good chance the prettiest part is going to be the local church and cemetery. Don’t judge me, I love visiting cemeteries here. We know from my last update I adored visiting Glasgow’s Necropolis, and I would 100% just going to any Scottish town’s cemetery if you visit. They’re all stunning!

Anyway, as soon as we realised Inverness’s cemetery was within walking distance of the coach, we set off. And although on a significantly smaller scale to Glasgow’s, it was equally as atmospheric, and we enjoyed wandering around the peaceful scene for a little while.

The walk back to the coach was also lovely, as we followed the river down one side of the town, then crossed over the main bridge, explored some of the pretty streets on the other side, then followed the opposite bank back.

It was only when we all arrived back onto the bus around 5pm and got going back down to Glasgow did I realise just how far we had travelled out of the city. Obviously I knew we were in the highlands, but when you have lots of little stops on the way up it doesn’t feel like you’re really driving for that long. But when I had a nap on Dani’s shoulder (would 100% recommend, she’s very comfy to nap on) and woke up an hour later and we still had 2.5 hours to go, I was taken aback! I didn’t realise you could drive for more than 3 hours at a time in Scotland and not get where you needed to go. Obviously being in a bus on small roads probably influenced the driving time more than just physical distance, but I definitely surprised. Not that I was bothered, though. The vibes were great, we were all in a good (but sleepy) mood, and we dobbed in to Joji that it was McKenna’s birthday on the way back onto the bus, so we made the entire coach full of slightly delirious students sing happy birthday to a random girl only the 3 of us actually knew. To be fair, they put a good amount of effort into it and solidified our place to Joji as some of his favourites of the trip. We loved him so much he was so sweet!

We also had to sing the unofficial Scottish anthem (Gonna Be) also known as 500 Miles. Apparently it’s a tradition of the tour to sing this song on the way back to the original destination, with each side of the bus singing certain sections of the chorus. Ok it wasn’t choral level, but it did sound pretty good! And a really wholesome way to finish the day’s adventures.

I don’t think we arrived back to campus until around 8pm, which made for an insanely long day. I think we were all feeling it by this point, and I was close to crashing at halls with Ken, Dani and Leïla, but I knew it would feel better to have all the space of my own room to get a good sleep in the day after. The 10 minute walk back to the apartment in the dark and cold really did finish me off though, as soon as I got back I completely crashed.

But what an incredible day! Each location just kept getting better and better, pretty much every stop was a ‘pinch me’ moment. And it wasn’t just the beautiful scenery that made the day one of the best so far, it was the fact I was so lucky to explore it with some of the most beautiful people I’ve met. Although I was exhausted at the end of the day, I remember feeling incredibly grateful to have met the girls that I got to travel to the highlands with! What gorgeous, generous, kind people. The magic of the day would’ve been diminished if the light of the people I was with hadn’t been so bright. It’s truly a privilege to be here in Scotland and be able to explore all these incredible places with all these incredible people. I can’t believe this is my life!

Currently MIA,

Lauren x