Bozeman to Amsterdam

Wednesday, May 14, 2014

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.

Stirling Castle

William Wallace Monument

Cliffs off the side of Stirling Castle

Inside Stirling Castle

Mom in one of the bed chambers

Views from the castle

More Views from the castle

Dad and I sitting in the thrones

This is the hairy Highland cow.... so cute

Lake in The Trossachs

Banks of Loch Lomond

Ben Lomond 3,196 feet

Beautiful Loch Lomond

Luss

My parents and I in front of Loch Lomond

Scotland: Frist Night Scotch Whisky Experience

On our first night in Scotland we went to the Scotch Whisky Experience. This was one of the things that Dad was super excited to go to. Here we learned how they make scotch whisky. They also told us information about the different regions in Scotland where the whisky is made and the different flavors of each of the regions. We also got to try some different scotch whisky. They have the largest collection of different scotch whiskys in the world.

After we were finished at the whisky experience we went for a walk in Edinburgh. We stopped at some gift shops and such. Then we went to dinner at a small restaurant.

Thursday, May 8, 2014

Brugge Belgium!!!!

Yesterday my wonderful mom and I went to Brugge, a city in Belgium. It was a beautiful city! The weather was not great but it didn't really matter because we were having such a wonderful time. We left Amsterdam on a bus around 9:00 in the morning, and drove for 3.5 hours. The Bus ride was lots of fun because we got to see lots of interesting things out the window. The tour guide we were with also told us interesting facts and history about the Netherlands and Belgium.

After we arrived in Brugge we went on a brief walking tour with our guide. After the tour was over we had free time. One of the first things we did was take a boat ride on the canals. The boat ride was so much fun! The canals in Brugge are very beautiful! The bridges we went under on the boat ride were so low that we had to duck so we didn't get our heads taken off. I also got tons of beautiful pictures from the boat.

Next we went to an old church. There are 2 churches one of them is built on top of the other. We only went inside the upper church. The upper church is very well know because they have a vile of blood that they believe is the blood of Jesus Christ. It was super interesting. I got to see the vile of blood but I was not allowed to take any photos of it unfortunately. The church its self was also extremely beautiful.

After going to the church we went and got some Belgian waffles. The Belgians are famous for their waffles, and I have to say that was probably the best waffle I have ever had in my life! We also went to some chocolate shops and bought some chocolates, which Belgium is also famous for. After our brief snack time we went and climbed a tower of one of the other churches. It was 366 steps to the top of the tower. At the top there were beautiful views of Brugge.

Next we went to the Church of Our Lady. It is the tallest church tower in Brugge. Inside the church the architecture is wonderful. They had such pretty stained glass. The pulpit in the church was absolutely amazing. The wood it was made out of was beautifully carved. Also inside the Church of Our Lady they have a Michelangelo sculpture. It is one of the only Michelangelo sculptures outside of Italy. The sculpture was magnificent. The church was under renovation so I did not get very many great pictures inside.

After visiting these places the two of us walked around Brugge and stopped in a few more chocolate shops. We got some wonderful pictures. Then we headed back to Amsterdam on the bus. We got home at about 9:30 and we ate the chocolate we brought home for dinner.