Greenock, Scotland (British Isles Cruise)

Our first port in Scotland was Greenock, about an hour away from Glasgow.  I had read that most people find Glasgow disappointing compared to Edinburgh, so I decided I want to see the Scottish Highlands instead.

We started out visiting Loch Lomond.  All the kids had played the piano tune of 'On the Bonnie Banks of Loch Lomond' at some point, so it was fun to see the place the catchy tune was about.  We took time trying to skip stones.

Right on the lake is a cute little village called Balloch that we wandered through.  The houses were cute and quaint.

This Luss Parish Church and cemetery from 1875 were charming.

 

Next, we stopped at Inveraray Castle, the ancestral home of the Clan Campbell and the Duke and Duchess of Argyll for centuries.  The current structure is from 1746, when the 15th century structure was replaced.  Lydia braided some wild flowers into her hair.

True to its reputation, we saw plenty of sheep in Scotland.  The castle ruins in the background on the lake were interesting to see too.

Highland cows (or "hieland coos") were a highlight for the kids.  We got some carrots and potatoes to feed them.  I thought it was rather smart of the owners to charge people to feed their animals.  The funnest part was trying to get the cows to stick their tongue out,  We also found a lot of dropped pieces of food, so unsurprisingly, we spent a lot of time here, feeding the coos. 

The long shaggy hair make these cows particularly distinctive.  Nate thought they looked like emo cows with the floppy hair hanging down over their eyes.

The cows are iconic for the Highlands and are marketed for all the tourist businesses, including our guide company.

 

 

Photo stop at Doune Castle, a medieval stronghold in central Scotland built in the 14th century. This castle is the site of the famous taunting scene in the Monty Python and the Holy Grail movie and when Nate heard that, he busted up laughing picturing cows being catapulted off the castle walls at us. 

Visiting Sterling Castle was a big highlight for me.  It was built in the 1400s and is one of the largest and most historically and architecturally important castles in Scotland.  (A castle was first built at this location in the 1100s).  The gardens were beautiful, and the interior exhibits were interesting.

 

Driving around Scotland, we saw many Scottish flags (much more than the UK flag, or for that matter, the English flag driving around England).  Stirling Castle followed suit with this floral flag.  In talking with our Scottish guides, we learned that many Scottish today favor independence, particularly post-Brexit.  They had a referendum a few years ago and after a lot of campaigning and promises, the referendum for Scottish independence failed.  Based on our discussions with our guides, it seemed they didn't feel the politicians followed through with their promises and if a referendum were held today, Scotland very well could be declared independent (and probably would rejoin the European Union).

 

The castle is perched on an extinct volcanic crag, offering strategic views and guarding a key crossing point on the River Forth.

These ladies were entertaining us with stories from centuries ago, like how personal hygiene was maintained, medicinal plants, etc.

Inside the castle, we admired the tapestries adorning the walls like here in one of the reception/throne rooms.

 

 

This was one of the royal bedrooms with a desk in front of a fireplace right next to a canopy bed.

 

Below is our cruise ship, the Princess Regal.  Our balcony was right at the front, on top.