We arrived in Edinburgh, Scotland after the usual arduous 26 hour journey.
We stayed at the airport hotel and crashed pretty early. Then we picked up our little hire car (with heated seats!)
and set off on our adventure up the east side of Scotland to Lossiemouth.
We were driving along and realised we had taken a different route to Lossiemouth than the one we intended but it soon became clear that the Mothership may have had a hand in that as we saw a sign to the highlanders chocolatier shop so we dutifully obeyed.
On the way there we saw a cute little stone inn that served food and on menu were home made scones. Again mum, so cheeky!
So we had scones and tea for brekkie followed by the most delicious hot chocolate at the highlander chocolatier.
It was situated in the cutest little village with a stone pub next door and set in luscious green scenery. Just gorgeous.
Later on during our drive up North we saw crowds of people at a small village called Carrbridge, so after some effort we found a park and went to check out what all the fuss was about. Turns out it was the Golden spurtle world porridge championships! Ummmm ok!!! 😬
We also stopped to check out a lovely town called Forres before reaching our end destination of Lossiemouth. We went for a nice long walk along the foreshore before Mum led us to the perfect spot to be hers in Scotland. It was a beautiful secluded little spot on the beach next to a huge rock and had an old log that made a perfect seat to enjoy the view of the lighthouse. We played some Scottish music and watched the sunset with Mum and left her there to enjoy the spot for always.
Tomorrow we head for the Orkneys!
Sunday, 4th October 2026
Travel day today. We drove almost four hours from Lossiemouth to Scrabster ferry terminal. We stopped in at a little village called Tain for a wander and then a brief look at the outside of Dunrobin castle before boarding the Ferry to Stromness on the Orkney islands.
The Orkney Islands are an archipelago off Scotland's northern coast, known for their cliffs, beaches, green landscapes and thousands of years of history. Total population is about 20000 people. The islands are home to ancient stone circles, Neolithic villages and burial chambers. We were both immediately struck by how isolated it feels here and how completely wild the weather is!
Monday, 5th October 2026
What a day! We covered quite a lot of territory today in spite of battling the 75km per hour winds. Leigh almost lost her car door at one stage!
We started at Birsay Earls palace which is a 16th-century ruin on Orkney's west coast. It was once a Renaissance residence.
Next up were the Ring of Brodgar and Standing stones of Stenness. I tried my best to time travel through the stones but alas was unsuccessful so I remain stuck here in 2026. 😋
We also visited the Maeshowe and Unstan chambered cairns which are grassy mounds that hide 5000+ year old Neolithic tombs.
Fascinating stuff! We finished the day off with a delicious dinner at the Standing Stones Hotel.
Tuesday, 6th October 2026
Today we explored the 5,000 year old Neolithic stone village of Skara Brae. Built around 3180 BC it is older than both Stonehenge and the Great Pyramids of Giza. That just totally blows my mind. The stone houses and their contents were preserved under sand dunes until a severe storm in 1850 stripped away the grass and sand covering it.
After exploring Skara Brae, we visited the Cuween chambered cairn, which was built by neolithic farmers 5000 years ago as a burial place. When it was found and excavated it housed the remains of humans and dogs. To enter the cairn, we had to crawl on our hands and knees. You can see below me crouching next to the entrance. Fun times!
Next up, we drove to Kirkwall and visited St Magnus cathedral, a 12th century church which was very cool. And then across the street the Bishop's and Earl's Palace - two ruined medieval and Renaissance structures that were closed for the season so we only got to walk around the outside.
Finally, we ended the day with a drive to Mull Head nature reserve where we did a 2 hour walk to see the Gloup - a 25-meter-deep collapsed sea cave, and then climbed across and up to the Brough of Deerness, a sea-stack and headland containing the remains of a 10th-century Norse chapel. That is me being a silly bugger on the right, doing my superhero pose after walking up the steep rock steps to the top. 😬
The landscape was very rugged and dramatic and makes you feel like you are at the top of the world.
Thursday, 8th October 2026
The last two days have been mainly travel days.
Wednesday we were booked in to catch the Ferry back to the Scotland mainland, and the morning was abit of a rainy day in the Orkneys so we just did a couple of short walks along the coastline when the rain stopped and the sun came out for an hour or so.
Today, we drove from the very top of Scotland mainland down to Aviemore. Along the way we stopped into the Culloden Battlefield and visitor centre which we both found very interesting. I had visited with mum 20 years ago on our first trip to Scotland but the centre is much bigger now with far more information and displays.
One thing we both found amusing was the "Fraser clan" marker on the Culloden battlefield now has a fenced area around it, preventing people from being able to get up close to it. The power of a TV show!
Just outside Aviemore is Cairngorms National park where we caught a funicular up the mountain to some lovely views. Then into Aviemore for the afternoon.
Tommorow we drive back to Edinburgh airport and catch our flight to Iceland where Lani is waiting for us after arriving today. See you tomorrow sister! ❤️
For those still following along with us, click on the Iceland flag below to see what we get up to!
