Ah, Scotland. Land of wild beauty, untamable landscapes, lush mountains, and…. sheep?

The past ten days have been a series of adventures around the Scottish Lowlands and Highlands. Through gentle valleys, long, winding roads, and up steep one-lane mountain passes, me and the ‘rents went from Peebles to Oban to Inverness to Edinburgh. Although this may sound dramatic, I think Scotland may be the most beautiful country I’ve ever visited.

This could be because it reminds me of home. The verdant beauty of the PNW never felt far away as we traversed through the green, hilly countryside. The only difference is the random appearances of ancient crumbling castles and sleepy little medieval towns that seem to be populous around Scotland. And did I mention the sheep?

Now, as we ride the train back towards the bustling metropolis of London, I can’t help but miss those quiet little villages and the serenity that they brought after the business of my program and other travels. In fact, it was so peaceful that I felt like I caught up on months of sleep. I think I spent almost our entire roadtrip to Oban on my birthday snoozing in the back seat, nestled next to our suitcases. Turning 23 was no rager, so what?

One thing I loved about Scotland that seemed to be consistent in every place we stayed was the pride the Scots have for their history and ancestry. They refuse to merge themselves with the English, and hold their own lore close to their hearts – often at the expense of said English, which was hilarious every time. Especially in Edinburgh, where you can hear bagpipes on every street corner and brusque Scottish brogues inside dusky pubs, you can’t help but respect the Scots for so staunchly upholding their traditions and customs.

This is also very apparent in the care they take to maintain their ancestral castles. From barely-there ruins to fully functioning living spaces, these buildings have been carefully maintained, historicized, and set up to allow visitors an incredible learning experience. I absorbed so much knowledge about the clans, the Jacobite wars, and Scotland’s history of strength in the face of danger that now all I want to do is go read and absorb more information.

Other fun experiences had in Scotland include: hiking through people’s farms to pet their friendly ponies (Scotland has a free-roaming law), touring the Isle of Skye and seeing some incredible scenery (and at least ten rainbows), stopping to look at many of Scotland’s famous lochs (maybe I saw Nessie in Loch Ness, I’ll never tell), and touring one of their oldest whiskey distilleries (those drams aren’t so wee after a while).

There are so many other amazing things that we got to see and experience, but it would be hard to fit in one post, so I’ll leave it here for now. As I write this I’m getting ready to see my best friends in just a few hours, and I could not be more excited. We’ll be in London for a week and then Paris for a week – the Europe girls trip is making it out of the group chat! I’m sure there will be many stories to tell, and I can’t wait to share them.

But for now…

From Scotland, with love,

Haley