So we’ve been to Loch Lomond, which is simply stunning. Then we crossed over land and sea to Islay, which is beautiful. And then to come back to the mainland for a quick 60 mile hike (ok, drive then, if you must) to see Oban. The jewel in the crown of the Highlands. The most beautiful place in the world.

They rave about it, they praise it to the heavens. And on that 60 mile drive, up the coast road, all sea and mountains and incredible majesty, you keep thinking: ‘wow; how great must Oban be if Kochmachracherchie (or what–ev-er) doesn’t even get a mention when it looks the greatest place on earth???’

And they finally, you round the bend, and there, right in front of you, is the reality, the actual town of Oban. Which you know because no-where else has an Aldi, right next to a Tesco Superstore. Ahhhh, the Highlands. There’s the ferry ports, three of them. There’s a high street filled with pound shops and fish’n’chip takeaways and empty units where they couldn’t sell souvenirs.

There are good bits of Oban, the gorgeous castle ruins, the McCraig Tower, but they all close at 4. I don’t know why, but they do. Its a Scottish thing; when people might want to come and see your attraction/eat your ice-cream/walk your castle, go down the pub. Fair enough.

So they lied about Oban. The rest of the highlands is simply magnificent and Oban is kind’a ‘nyehhh’.

Until sunset. And then Oban becomes almost worth most of the hype. Because its not about looking AT Oban, its about looking OUT FROM Oban. Its on the west coast, it has loads of islands around it, its a gorgeous natural bay and as the sun sets and all the Scottish people are inside the pubs, it becomes simply beautiful.

So beautiful that we left this morning, for a quick jaunt over to Whitby in North Yorkshire. Only 350 miles, we should’a walked it. And here we shall shall stay, until the end of… our stay. Ticking off the ‘never been there before’s.

I’m gonna miss Scotland.

Happy Thursday

A xxxx