Isle of Skye and the West Highlands, Scotland

April 28, 2023

I was still under the weather when we arrived at the Isle of Skye, our first port in Scotland. I was sorry to miss the tour of the West Highlands, but it felt it was best not to spread the cold my sore throat had developed into. Brent did have a great time seeing the Eilean Dolan Castle and learning about the Highlands. I will need to return someday as I have ancestors from the Highlands. The MacIans were a part of the McDonald clan that feuded with the Campbells and were massacred by the Campbells and British at Glencoe.

I was able to admire the Isle of Skye from the boat though. It was foggy when we arrived, but by the afternoon, the fog had burned off.

The highlight of Brent's tour was the Eilean Dolan Castle which was a stronghold of the MacKenzie clan. However, like the MacDonalds, the MacKenzies sympathized with the Jacobites who wanted to place James Stuart (the son of Mary Queen of Scotts) on the English throne. The British navy destroyed the castle. After its restoration, the castle was used in many movies such as Bonnie Prince Charlie, The Highlander, and the James Bond Film, The World Is Not Enough. It is also a popular tourist destination as the third most visited castle in Scotland.

The drive through the Highlands and the stop in town to explore was enjoyable for Brent as well. He picked up some haggis and blood pudding, but sadly they were confiscated by the airline when we went to fly home - apparently even though they were canned, they were considered to be "liquids".

When he got back, he rested a bit before getting ready for a special dinner at the Caneletto with our friends Polly, Kelly, Joe, Craig and Sumi. Sadly I had to miss as I was still sick. He did send some of the delicious meatballs to my room though.

Although I missed the dinner, I did get to enjoy the beautiful sunset from the room.