Bozeman to Amsterdam: Scotland Day 2: Stirling Castle, The Trossachs and Loch Lomond

On Saturday we went on a day trip outside Edinburgh to Stirling Castle, The Trossachs and Loch Lomond. We got on a bus in Edinburgh at 9:00 in the morning and drove to Stirling Castle. Stirling castle is one of the most famous castles in all of Scotland. The castle dates from at least the early 12th century, but most of the buildings there today were built sometime between 1500-1600. The castle is built on top of a volcanic rock. This helps the castle protect itself. There are steep cliffs surrounding most of the castle walls.

At the Castle we got to go inside many of the rooms. We visited the bedrooms and kitchens and such. We also got to go inside of the chapel where Mary Queen of Scots was crowned.

After visiting the castle we drove some more into the Trossachs. There were lots of beautiful things to see there. We saw mountains, lakes and many other beautiful landscapes. We also go to see the hairy highland cows. After driving we stopped for lunch in a small Scottish town. The three of us ordered fish and chips. It was the best fish and chips I have ever tasted. We then got back in the bus and drove the rest of the way to Loch Lomond.

Loch Lomond is the biggest fresh water lake in Scotland. It is about 5 miles wide and 24 miles long. We got to take a cruise across the lake which was wonderful. We saw many of the little islands on the loch. There are also some beautiful mountains surrounding the loch. This loch does not have a monster in it like Loch Ness. After our one hour cruise was over we were dropped in a small village called Luss. It is a very beautiful village, and we took many great pictures.

After leaving Loch Lomond we headed back to Edinburgh. Once we were back in Edinburgh we walked around for a little bit. We came across some children playing music. There we some kids playing band instruments, and some dressed in kilts playing bag pipes. They were very good. We listened to them for a half hour and then went back to our hotel and went directly to sleep. It was a very fun and exciting day.