Part 1- July 18 – 20: Edinburg and Glasgow, Scotland      

July 18: K’s departure flight would be from Glasgow on July 21, we decided to spend three nights in Glasgow (I would stay in the UK till 31 July). We landed at the Edinburgh airport from Faroe Islands on schedule after 4 pm. After a 30-minute wait, we got on a double-decker coach without air-conditioning. It’s impossible to open the window. It was a torture!

By the time we arrived at the bus station in Glasgow, we had to wait more than 40 minutes for a taxi to the Jury Inn Hotel close to the train station (As the rate at Radisson had gone up a lot since our booking, we had to look for another hotel nearby for two extra nights). By the time we were ready to eat, it was well after 8 pm. We had dinner in a nice Italian restaurant. But the service was slow, and it was after ten before we finished our dinner. What a long day!

July 19: We had a leisure day in Glasgow. We explored the city on foot walking along the River Clyde and visited the Metropolitan Cathedral of St Andrew with a lot of history on St Mungo. Then we reached the Merchant City with magnificent buildings reflecting the wealth and glory of the city’s past before reaching Strathclyde University, the Necropolis and the Cathedral both of which are treasures. After learning the history of the patron saint of Ireland, I am mindful when visiting St Mungo’s Tomb in the Cathedral.

The UK was suffering from extreme heat wave. It was so hot that we did not want to do much at all. We walked to the George Square and spent over an hour in the nearby Gallery of Modern Art. I ended up buying a painting on glass of northern lights from an art gallery opposite nearby.

July 20:  We took a taxi to the Burrell Collection at the Pollok Country Park. Out of its 6,000 items in the collection, some 2,500 are of Chinese origin.  I am lucky to be able to visit the museum which was closed for renovation in October 2016 and only reopened this March.  I joined a guided tour for an hour before looking at the collection by myself. We had a great time in the museum and took a free shuttle to the nearby train station to take a local train to return to Glasgow.

At 4:45pm, I took an express train to Edinburgh to visit Hazel and James who have moved to a new house about an hour by bus from the Haymarket. My short excursion into the suburb of greater Edinburgh is delightful. I had a great evening with Hazel, James and Rowena (Denise’s eldest daughter) who was visiting her sister. I have known the girls since they were babies. Time flies! I find the train service in Scotland fairly good, and I was back in Glasgow train station before 11 pm.

Part 2 – July 21 – 25: Lake District.

July 21: I bid good-bye to K after breakfast to catch the 9:06 am train to Windemere. When I arrived in the train station, I found out that the train was canceled owing to the ongoing labour disputes and strikes.  I had to take another one after 10:30am and changed twice before arriving in Windemere around 1 pm. I booked in a nice BnB for two nights. When I wanted to stay one more night, it was already fully booked. I had to find another BnB.

I like Windemere which is less crowded and touristy. In the afternoon, I took the easy Orrest Head trail to a hilltop with magnificent 360-degree view of Windemere and surrounding areas. I enjoy walking at my own pace through the wood. I had an early dinner with grilled sea beam in a local pub. I also booked two full day tours for the next two days (£50 per trip with senior discount).

July 22: Full-day Ten Lakes Tour. It was a small group with 12 persons with Dave as our guide. The weather was fine apart from light rain in the morning. Dave is cheerful and experienced giving lots of information about the Lake District. We passed four lakes (Windermere, Rydal Water and Grasmere) before our first stop at the picturesque village of Grasmere. We all headed to Wordsworth’s grave in St. Oswald’s Churchyard. I enjoyed sitting in the Daffodil Garden next to the church in memory of Wordsworth.

On our way to a hilltop ‘Surprise View’ for panoramic views of the valleys, lakes and surrounding mountain ranges, we had sight of Thirlmere, Bassenthwaite and Derwentwater. Dave told us to take photos of the most photographed Ashness Bridge nearby. It is a very small stone bridge!

Then we travelled through the Borrowdale and over the Honister pass with a short stop at the Honister slate mine with fabulous views of the pass and dales below and the mountain ranges. On the way to Keswick, we saw Buttermere, Crummock Water, Moss Force Waterfall and Newland Dale. We had a lunch stop in Keswick. I bought a Cumberland sausage that was so big that I left half for the dinner and had a nice stroll in this small bustling town.

The next stop was the Castlerigg Stone Circle which is described by the English-Heritage Organisation as “perhaps the most atmospheric and dramatically sited of all British stone circles with panoramic views and the mountains of Helvellyn and High Seat as a backdrop”.  It was indeed a highlight. On the way to Windemere, we saw Ullswater and Patterdale Brothers Water, travelled through the Kirkstone Pass and had a photo stop at Townsend/Kaiser Lookout point. I was dropped off before 5pm. A nice quick introduction to the Lake District indeed!

July 23: Western Lakes. The weather was unsteady with a grey sky. We travelled on the less travelled part of the Lake District which is sparsely populated and more atmospheric. There were only ten passengers. Most of the time, we were on narrow single-lane country path. We drove through the Great Langdale, Little Langdale, got over the Wrynose Pass and Hardknott Pass which are said to be England’s steepest road. We caught a glimpse of Scafell Pike, the highest peak in the Lake District. We saw remains of the Hardknott Roman Fort from a distance.

We stopped at Boot for lunch. Instead of enjoying a nice lunch in a family inn, I wandered around in the rain to see the restored Ravenglass and Eskdale railway and visit the picturesque village with a water corn mill dating back to 1547.

On the way to the Muncaster Castle, we had a brief stop at Wastwater, England’s deepest and most dramatic lake. The weather had improved when we arrived at the 14^th century historic haunted castle owned by the Pennington family. Overlooking the River Esk, the castle siting on over 80 acres of land has beautiful and well-designed gardens, a hawk and owl centre and ten walking trails. On arrival, we hurried to watch the flying displays of falcon and vultures that began at 2 pm. We were late and only saw the second half for about ten minutes. Anyway, I was glad to catch a glimpse of a majestic and most beautiful falcon in action and got a decent photo. In addition, there are two more displays: the world of owls at 11:30am and wild heron feed at 4pm. There is a lot to do: I can spend a whole day instead of an hour in the Castle.

On the way back to Windemere, we had a brief stop at Coniston Water. I like this tour and am glad to see the less travelled and less touristic part of the Lake District.

July 24: I had a lovely morning in Windemere as my train to Blackpool was scheduled at 3:44 pm.  I took a leisure walk to the lake following the Birthwaite Road and the Rayrigg trail. I passed by the Jetty Museum before arriving at Bowness-on-Windemere. The weather was nice and hot. As tourists were everywhere, I took refuge in the atmospheric ancient parish church of St Martin built in 1483 and spent over an hour enjoying a scone tea-set for £10 in the veranda overlooking the lake at the stylish Macdonald Old England Hotel.

Part 3- July 24: Blackpool

July 24: As expected, the train I had booked was canceled. I had to change train in Lancaster and Preston and was late by 45 minutes. Luckily, I was able to stay in touch via email with my host Mike. I was relieved to be greeted by Mike whom Carla and I visited in 2019. I was hungry. He took me to a pub and we had a hearty dinner.

July 25: Buttermere Walk. Mike runs a BnB in Blackpool and goes hiking in the Lake District every week. I was glad when he suggested a walk in Buttermere. It was drizzling when we began the walk around 2 pm. The entire walk around the lake which is 2km long and 0.57km wide, is about 6 km.  Buttermere is surrounded by mountains with several beautiful waterfalls. Mike said his favourite pastime is to sit and listen to the sound of the waterfalls. We had packed lunch sitting opposite the biggest waterfall across the lake and could still listen clearly to the thundering sound. I thoroughly enjoyed the walk around this atmospheric, peaceful and beautiful small lake.

Water from Buttermere flows to Crummock through a stream. We drove along the shore of Crummock which looks impressive with rugged high mountains as a backdrop.  After an early pub dinner in Ambleside, we were back in Blackpool after 8:30pm.  I am glad I have spent five days in the Lake District on this trip.

Part 4- July 26 – 31: Oxford & London

July 26-30: I spent two nights at the lovely house of Margaret and Steuart (my boss in Brussels) in Oxford and three nights in London to meet up with Carla, Robert, Lawrence, CT, Ada, Joy and Sunny, Emily and family over dinner or lunch. It is wonderful to see old good friends again. Apparently most of the people I met had COVID at least once. We felt sad to see the world in chaos. Where is paradise?

July 31: My flight to Frankfurt would depart at 11:30am. Given the  horrific problems and delays at the airport, I took the 7 am coach from Victoria.  The check-in arrangements in Terminal 2 were bad with long queues. There was no self-service machine nor fast drop-bag service.  I waited for an hour though I had already checked in online. After check-in, there was another long queue for security check. What a mess! Luckily, the LH flight to Frankfurt took off as scheduled.

Faroe Islands (FI), a North Atlantic archipelago, comprises 18 major islands with an area of 1,400 km² and a population of 54,000 (as at June 2022). Located 320 km north-northwest of Scotland, 580km from Norway and 430 km from Iceland, FI made up of an approximately six-kilometres-thick succession of mostly basaltic lava, are rugged and rocky with spectacular coasts which are mostly cliffs. The highest point is Slættaratindur at 882m in northern Eysturoy. There is some evidence of settlement before the arrival of Norse Viking settlers in the ninth century CE. The territory as part of the Kingdom of Denmark, has been self-governing since 1948.  

July 12: K and I were relieved when the plane touched down around 8:30pm. It was drizzling and grey. By the time K got the key of the rental car, it was approaching 10pm. K is a cautious driver not comfortable to drive in the dark. The 45km-drive from the airport to the Hotel 62N in Tórshavn on the Island of Streymoy, the biggest island the group. We arrived at the hotel around 11pm.  What a long and arduous day!

July 13: First, we drove to the village of Kirkjubøur, 13 km southwest from Tórshavn. It is the only site in the islands with historical remains of imposing monumental character. The ruin of the St. Magus Cathedral (often just called the ‘Wall’) in association with the bishops’ seat from early 12^th century to its abolishment in 1557, are impressive: the high walls were erected of stones laid in a local mortar and plastered.

Next to the Wall are some colourful and well-preserved medieval log-buildings that had been erected on top of the remains of the bishop’s residence. These farmhouses had been built in a log-building tradition and are not stave-built as was the custom in the islands.  

In front of the Wall and the log-buildings is St. Olavs Church that is the only medieval church still in use in the islands. First erected in the 13^th century as the cathedral of the island, it became a parish church after reformation and remains in use today. The church graveyard is atmospheric too.

Our second stop was Vestmanna where we had booked a boat ride to see spectacular coastlines and cliffs. The boat was packed with tourists and the sea was not too calm. We were told boat trips were canceled on July 11 and 12. Anyway, we only got close to one cove during the hour and a half cruise.  I do not find the scenery and experience as spectacular as advertised. Tonight, we stayed at Hotel Djurhuus close to the port and the old town.

July 14: We headed west and stayed at the self-contained Lokkinn Apartment in the Island of Bordoy.  On the way, we stopped first at Fuglafjørôur, which is a cultural centre in Eysturoy. There are a series of sculpture in the harbour.

Our second stop was Klaksvik, the second town in FI. We planned to drive along a dirt road to a car park and then hike to the top of Klakkur (413m), considered one of the best hikes in the islands. But the dirt road was temporarily closed to allow sheep to come down. After waiting for a while, we decided to leave and return later. We bought some food in a supermarket and then saw a fisherman selling fresh fish by the pier. I was overcome with joy and happily paid 40 DKK for a big haddock. We could see cars still waiting to drive up the dirt road to the car park. Hence, we dropped the idea and drove to the Island of Kunoy. We met and had a chat with a nice couple living in one of the few houses in Kunoy.

We had little difficulties in finding the Lokkinn Apartment and spent the afternoon exploring Muir, a deserted village at the end of the road. The deserted village is atmospheric. I was the chef for the only time on this trip and we had fried haddock and scallop for dinner.

July 15: We drove to Viôareiôi, the northernmost settlement on the Island of Viôoy lying on an isthmus with high mountains to both the north and south. It is the departure point for a strenuous hike to Mount Villingdalsfjall (844m) and Cape Enniberg (751m), the highest promontory in the world and the second-highest sea cliff in Europe.

We returned to Klaksvik and were able to hike to the top of Klakkur. We had excellent weather with blue sky. The panoramic views of Klaksvik and the island of Kalsoy and Kunoy are breathtaking.

In the afternoon, we were back on the Island of Eysturoy in order to visit a few picturesque villages namely Hellurnar, Oyndarfjørôur, Elfuvik and Funningur before arriving at Gjarrgardur Guesthouse in Gjógv.  We had some difficulties in finding the ‘rocking stones’ in Oyndarfjørôur. Do they really move and rock? I wonder. I find the narrow Funningsfjørôur most atmospheric.  As we had to reach our guesthouse by 7:30pm, we did not have time to stop at Funningur.

We arrived just in time to have dinner. The lamb chop was most delicious. After dinner, we walked a short distance to see a spectacular 200m-long gorge. There is also a steep path leading up the top of sea cliffs with plenty of puffins. K loves taking photos of flowers and birds. So, she spent over an hour in one spot to take photos of puffins. I tried to call her to tell her my plan to hike to the top of the cliffs to watch sunset without success. As a result, I gave up the idea and just watched it at a less advantageous point. We returned to the hotel after 10:30pm when the clouds were still rosy red in colour. If I were on my own, I would have walked to the top, and stayed on for another 15 minutes.

July 16:  We had poor weather today. After a nice breakfast, we planned to continue the hike to the top of the sea cliff. As it was too windy, we gave up the idea. K wanted to take photos of the puffins. I said I would take a walk near the gorge. But after waiting for a long time near the gorge, I did not see her. My clothes were soaking wet, and I decided to return to the hotel to wait for her. Alas, we seemed to miss each other. While I was waiting in the restaurant, she was sitting inside the car.  We wasted the morning and did not set off till 12:30pm.

The weather had improved slightly. We drove to Eiôi before returning to the Island of Streymoy. We visited three spots before returning to Torshavn for the night.

Tjørnuvík one of the iconic villages in FI. This village with traditional houses with grassy roof is known for its moody atmosphere and its view of the iconic sea stacks of Risin & Kellingin. We truly experienced its charm as it was drizzling with occasional bright moments. We had coffee and waffles for 50 DKK each in one of the old houses. Really wonderful! 

Fossá Waterfall (140m) which cascades down in two sections. The waterfall in its entirety can only be seen from a far.

Saksun. Lying in the bottom of what used to be an inlet of the sea, it is surrounded by high mountains. The inlet formed a deep natural harbour until a storm blocked it with sand. The old harbour become an inaccessible seawater lagoon, but accessible during high tide. The church standing on top of a cliff with lagoon or harbour depending on the tide is one of the attractions of FI. Unfortunately, it was late and grey, we did not walk down to the beach.  

It was well after 8 pm when we checked in Hotel Brandan where we also had a sumptuous 3-course dinner for 500 DKK which is considered value-for-money for its presentation and high quality.

July 17: Our plan was to take a ferry  to the Island of Mykines to see puffins. As I had not checked emails, I missed an email from the ferry company informing me of the cancellation of the ferry. When we arrived at the harbour in Søvágur without a ferry, we decided to drive to see the village of Bour and then Gásadalur to see the waterfall. At the same time, we tentatively booked two places on a private boat for a trip at 4:30pm to see the rocky islet Tindhólmur, Gáshólmur and the two ‘drangar’ (sea stacks).

Things worked out well. We had a most enjoyable time in the picturesque and atmospheric old village of Bøur with narrow lanes, traditional houses, a church built in 1865, graveyard and a black sand beach. Above all, it offers fantastic views of the icon rocky islet Tindhólmur with its many peaks, Gáshólmur and the two ‘drangar’ (sea stacks). We left when loads of tourists arriving in coaches.

We then drove to the remote village of Gásadalur and walked to the nearby Múlafossur Waterfall. This village was the last settlement in the islands to be connected to the rest of the country in 2006. We enjoyed excellent panoramic view over the westernmost island Mykines, the splendid scenery and landscape. We had a drink in a crowded café.  

We returned to Søvágur to cancel the boat trip. But the lady who had helped us in the morning was no longer helpful. Suddenly a young Chinese girl speaking Cantonese came to our rescue. She offered to make the phone call for us. Furthermore, she told us to follow her car and led us to entrance for a hike along the Lake Leitisvatn (also known as Srøvágsvatn) to reach Trælanípan (Slate Cliff), to see the Bøsdalafossur. The self-guided hiking fee is 200 DKK.

This hike is a top attraction for landscape photos. One can have 360-degree view of the sea, the Trælanípan, a 142m-high perpendicular basalt rock wall rising out of the sea with the expansive backdrop of the lake which is about 30m above the sea level and a waterfall from the lake into the Atlantic Ocean.  The trail is well-signed. Fit hikers take an hour for the round trip. But we spent some two hours stopping every two minutes to enjoy the views and take photos. From Trælanípan, we had the optical illusion where the lake looks like floating high above the sea. We also had good views of the southernmost part of Streymoy, Hestur, Koltur, Sandoy, Skúvoyand Suôuroy as the weather had improved. We dared not get too close to the edge as it was very windy. An accidental fall would cost one’s life.

After checking in Hilton Garden Inn, we walked a short distance for dinner at Hotel Brandan. We were too tired to go for a traditional dinner to the old town.

July 18: After a sumptuous breakfast, we had a 20-minute whirlwind tour of the old town before heading to the airport. I manged to have a whirlwind tour of Tinganes. Before returning the car at the airport, we drove to the Pouls Airport Guesthouse where we had booked for July 11. As we could not turn up owing to the flight cancellation, Pouls kindly waived the room charge. I gave him a box of chocolate as a token of appreciation.  

Our flight to Edinburgh would depart around 2:30pm. This time, I checked in without problem. But it was K’s turn to have problem.  The Atlantic Airways staff said that her ticket had been used and she had no ticket in their system. What happened? The flight was yet to depart.  How could her ticket had been used? The staff advised K to check with the agent in Hong Kong and the agent Hans that issued her ticket. There was no reply from Hans and nothing could be done. At the end, K paid some 1600 DKK for a ticket in order to get on the flight. She had to seek refund later. It was incredible what had happened to both K and myself. The flight was delayed for half an hour. After a flight of 90 minutes, we landed safely at the Edinburgh airport after an amazing and most memorable journey.

Trip Planning 

My 54-day trip to the UK and Germany is simply a result of “dependency co-arising”.  First, I had a gap of two months between June and August before commencement of a full-time Buddhist Counselling course in the University of Hong Kong in September. Second, Heritage Expedition which had canceled the Russian expedition from Otaru to Alaska, put forward in April an interesting “Atlantic Odyssey” itinerary from Aberdeen to Troon, Scotland via Faroe Islands from July 8 to 20. I signed up without second thought.  Third, I would have a chance to visit old friends in Scotland and England. Finally, as Lufthansa (LH) flied direct from Edinburgh via Frankfurt, I would have a chance to visit Germany for three weeks.  

It is impossible to plan these days! On June 23, I got an email announcing the cancellation of the July expedition owing to health and political considerations. As my friend, K and I had already booked flights and hotels in Scotland, we decided to go ahead. Within a week, we revamped our travelling plan in Scotland, booked flights to Faroe Islands and rental car in Scotland and Faroe Islands.  

Part 1 – June 28 – July 1: Auchnarrow, Cairngorms National Park

My flight would depart after 11 pm. I left home shortly after 7 pm and had to take the airport express instead of the airport bus which no longer ran frequently. I was at the departure hall by 8:30pm. The airport was eerie, quiet, and deserted. Even the lounge I used before was now closed. The LH flight was full. Luckily, I had an aisle seat on Row 18 with plenty of leg room.  It took off after midnight. I was so tired that I dosed off for several hours. 

I landed at the Frankfurt airport before 7am on June 29. While waiting for my connecting flight to Edinburgh, I found a comfortable couch in a quiet corner and had some rest. Apparently, the airport was affected by staff shortage too and some flights had to be canceled. Luckily my flight took off after an hour’s delay. After an uneventful short flight, I landed in Edinburgh airport which has expanded a lot since my last visit in 2010. Owing to staff shortage, passengers had to stay on the plane for half an hour and waited a while for the luggage. Anyway, I was relieved to get out of the airport after 2 pm.  

My plan was to stay for a few days with Denise, my late Godmother’s daughter whom I have known for over fifty years. Denise lives in a remote area located inside the Cairngorms National Park, UK’s largest national park with an area of some 4,500km².  Things worked out perfectly. I bought a senior rail card for £30 which proved to be a good investment. I took the 3pm train from Inverkething to Aviemore, was picked up by Chris around 6 pm and arrived at Denise’s beautiful 150-year-old stone house (known as the ‘School House’) before 7 pm.  From the kitchen, I had full views of the majestic Cairngorms range of mountains.  

During the pandemic, we all trasure our family and friends. I have known Denise since 1966 in Hong Kong and we last met in Taunton in mid-March 2020 just before her mom (Mrs. Thorn) passed away. We sat in the kitchen or the sitting room drinking tea and coffee talking about the old days, her mom and dad, and everything under the sun. I did not know Chris is a celebrated rambler till I had a chance to see his work. I enjoy listening to his adventure, guiding and writing career. I also spent much time by the kitchen window watching birds, rabbits, squirrels, deer, the trees and landscape. I was excited when Helen who has recently moved from Aviemore to Inverness, arrived for a reunion. We all met in Hong Kong around 1968. All in all, I had a most memorable, peaceful and beautiful séjour in the ‘School House’.

Part 2- July 2 – 4: Aviemore, Cairngorms National Park

After a leisure breakfast with Denise, Chris drove me to Grantown-on-Spey to catch a bus at 12:30 pm. After meeting up with my friend, K in in Aviemore, I was delighted to have a chance to meet Hazel (Denise’s daughter) and James who live near Edinburgh before they drove to Denise’s School House for a week.  Things worked out perfectly!

We were lucky to have fine weather during our 3-day stay in Aviemore. We had three short walks over two days. The first walk on July 3 was to the idyllic Loch an Eilein, a small irregular shaped lake in the Rothiemurchus Forest about 5km from Aviemore. In the middle of the lake is the ruin of a small 14^th century castle. In the afternoon, we had a nice short walk up the park behind Aviemore for panoramic views. Good exercise.

On July 4, we decided to visit the Nature Reserve at Loch Garten to see the osprey and chicks which were under 24-hour camera surveillance.  We took a bus at 9:10 am and were told to walk over a mile from the bus stop to the reserve. While on the main path, we decided to follow a forest trail on the advice of a cyclist. Alas, we had no trail map in hand and soon got lost. After two hours wandering in the forest, we had to retrace our steps to the starting point on the main road and followed it all the way to the reserve. We spent a while in the visitor centre to watch the osprey and her two chicks through the TV screen and binoculars.

We had an enjoyable leisure walk halfway around Loch Garten and took some lovely photos of the blue sky, water lilies, weeds, trees and the lake. We had a delicious early dinner with slow-cooked cod in the Old Bridge Inn in Aviemore. The bonus of our stay in Aviemore was my purchase of a pair of Hoka training shoes highly recommended by Chris: I wore it throughout my travel!

Part 3- July 5 – 10: Inverness & Isle of Skye (Skye)  

July 5: We took the 10:51 am train to Inverness and later picked up a Honda automatic Jazz (expensive – £650 for 6 days). We decided to drive and explore the eastern part of Inverness. We arrived in Nairn, a small port with a lively beach where we had nice take-away seafood as restaurants were all closed after 2:30pm. Next, we arrived at the Findhorn Beach with sand dunes and colourful beach huts. In Burghead a small town mainly built on a peninsular projecting north-westward into the Moray Firth, we visited the Pictish Fort from where we watched a school of dolphins swimming by.

By the time we reached Elgin, a former cathedral city and the administrative and commercial centre for Moray, it was well after 6 pm. Elgin, first documented in 1190, is known for its cathedral ruin. Founded in 1224, the cathedral had undergone periods of enlargement and renovation. The colossal and expansive ruin is most impressive and atmospheric. Unfortunately, we could not visit it. We had a surprisingly good time in a beautiful Biblical garden filled up plants and flowers mentioned in Bible.

It was a long drive back to Inverness. We stopped at a supermarket and  had trouble driving to the BnB as the access road was temporarily closed. By the time we arrived at the BnB, it was close to 9pm. We were tired and only had cup noodles for supper. 

July 6: We invited Helen to join us today. We set off to Dornoch which is a lovely compact old town with a dominating 13^th-century cathedral, an imposing jail, a previous Bishop’s Palace which is now a hotel and a castle which is a golf club today. The town became better known internationally when son of pop star Madonna was christened in the Cathedral, and she got married in the nearby Skibo Castle.  We spent more than two hours exploring the town, which is interesting, quiet and elegant. 

The sudden downpour of rain forced us to take shelter at the Lairg Visitor Centre which has an interesting well-presented exhibition of the meteorite found in Scotland, the geology and human history of the area. I learn about the North West Highlands Geopark and hope to visit it on my next visit to Scotland.

Our third stop was the Falls of Shin. We got lost again and wasted an hour. Luckily, we watched more than half a dozen Atlantic salmon leaping over the falls to reach its sprawling grounds. 

As the weather had improved with the sky brightening up, we drove around the Isle of Black and visited the picturesque Chanonry Point with a lighthouse. Helen kindly invited us to visit her new flat. K and I bought nice fish (but no chip) in Fortrose and had our supper at her place. A wonderful day.

July 7: We drove to Skye, the largest and northernmost of the major islands in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland with an area of 1,656km². The main highway to Skye is A87 that ends at Uig. On the advice of the BnB owner, we took the country road to visit Plockton, a picturesque village on the shores of Loch Carron in the Lochalsh, with stunning views of distant peaks and shorelines and a ‘sub-tropical appearance’ created by the plantation of New Zealand cabbage palm trees. I had steamed local mussels while K had soup for lunch. But the quality was average.

After lunch, we got back on A87 and drove to Portree where we would stay two nights. We did not settle down in the BnB till almost 6pm. Despite the foggy and poor visibility, we decided to follow the coastal road A855 to see a few more spots before dark. Luckily the weather improved after our first stop at the Bride’s Veil Falls which is not worth the time. The next stop was the Lealt Falls. We could see waterfalls from a distance from a viewing platform and ruin of a salmon factory on the beach below the cliff from another platform. I fell once and luckily had not hurt myself.   

The third and final stop was the famous Mealt Falls & Kilt Rock. Here the sheer cliffs formed of basalt columns atop of a bed of sandstone, is famously known as ‘Kilt Rock’ as the natural ripple effect of the rock resembles the pleated folds of a traditional Highland kilt. Kilt Rock roughly 90m high is located north of the dramatic waterfalls created from the outflow of Loch Mealt which drops about 55m to the rocky shore below. The viewpoint offers spectacular views of these two natural wonders. Nonetheless, I think the best view would be from a boat.  

We had Indian take-away for dinner. The room of the Bn is so small that we could not move around at all!

July 8: We had a good day. We arrived at the Dunvegan Castle around 10 am and saw at least a dozen of large coaches in the car park. We were not keen to stay indoor during the pandemic and decided to drive to the Neist Point, the most westerly tip of Skye, to take a hike to the Neist Point Lighthouse. The 2.2-km long hike is most enjoyable. The high cliffs and shorelines provide a dramatic backdrop for the 43-m high lighthouse built in 1900. The sea, rocks by the lighthouse and colonies of seabirds on the cliffs make the location even more atmospheric. It would be an excellent spot to watch sunset.

The weather was wonderful, clear and cool. After the hike, we found a nice small café in Dunvegan that serves the best mussel we had during the entire journey. We drove to Borve in order to take A87 to Uig and went up to the northern end of the Trotternish peninsula. We stopped at the Grave of Flora MacDonald which commemorates her heroic act in helping Bonnie Prince Charlie to escape to Skye in June 1746.  

Before returning to Portree, we stopped at the Kilt Rock & Mealt Falls Viewpoint again in order to fully appreciate the marvelous landscape in good weather.

July 9: We started off at 8 am in order to reach Elgol well before our boat ride scheduled at 10:45am to Loch Coruisk, an inland fresh-water loch lying at the foot of the Black Cuillin with 12 munros (a mountain with a height of 3,000 ft/914.4m) famous for dramatic and breathtaking scenery. The rugged soaring peaks are mainly composed of gabbro, a very rough igneous rock.  The ridge curving around the loch is about 14 km long with Sgùrr at 992m as the highest point of the isle. The Red Cuillin mainly composed of granite subject more to erosion has lower and smoother outlines. The loch is reputed to be the home of water horse. We landed after 11:30am and had about two hours to explore the picturesque loch.

We headed back to the mainland despite our wish to visit other attractions like the Storr, Fairy Pools etc as we had to return the car by 1pm the following day.  We followed A87 to a BnB close to Fort Augustus for the night and only stopped twice at Eilean Donan and for dinner.  This BnB charging less than £100 turned out to be the best and most value-for-money for our time in Scotland.

July 10:  We set off after 9 am and spent an hour in Fort Augustus watching the working of the locks and movements of boats. Thinking we would have enough time to take the car back to the airport by 1 pm, we took the winding scenic drive along the southern shore of Loch Ness instead of A87. This decision cost us dearly. As we did not have time to stop several kilometers outside the airport to refuel the tank, the car rental company charged us over £4 per liter to fill up the tank. After returning the car shortly after 1 pm, we waited over an hour for a bus to Inverness. Had I known the bus schedule, I would have simply taken a taxi and paid £25 for a quick ride.

We spent a lovely time in Inverness. We stayed in River Ness Hotel on Church Street and visited the Abertarff House, the oldest house built in Inverness in 1593 nearby.  We strolled along the River Ness (the Ness walk) planked by the Old Gaelic Church which has a historic sanctuary with a graveyard, and the Free Church of Scotland. We crossed the Greig St. Bridge to visit the St Mary’s Roman Catholic Church and the St. Andrew Cathedral. After a pleasant stroll, we crossed the Infirmary Bridge and returned to the hotel to meet Helen for dinner at 5:30pm. We had a nice dinner in Blackfriars Inverness on Academy Street. The building dated 1793 has been beautifully renovated. The pub offers delicious Sunday roast. I had the best Yorkshire pudding I could remember in the last twenty years. After dinner, I walked Helen to the Market Brae Steps where she had left her bike. I had a lovely walk around that area, followed the Raining’s stairs to reach the High Street. I like old town centre and the river. 

July 11: Departure for Faroe Islands (original plan:  Faroe Islands July 11 – 18). Our Atlantic Airways flight to Faroe Islands would depart from Edinburgh before 5 pm. We got up early in order to take the 8:40 am train to Edinburgh. Things went smoothly until we were inside the departure hall searching for the departure gate an hour before departure.  We were shocked to see the flight cancellation. For the next few hours, the frantic passengers all tried to find out what happened. Apparently, all flights were canceled owing to foul weather in Faroe Islands. The Swissport, the ground handling agent, told us to find accommodation ourselves and we would be reimbursed with proper receipt up to €250 per room plus taxi fares. We were also given £20 for food to be spent at the airport. As an event was going on in Edinburgh, it was difficult to find a decent hotel for €250. Incredible! Anyway, we stayed at Hampton Court West End

July 12: We returned to the airport before 11:30am to wait for our flight scheduled for departure around 2 pm. It turned out to be a nightmare. First, when I checked in, they could not find my booking. I showed Swissport staff my boarding pass of July 11. They understood but could not do anything. They told me to contact my agent in Hong Kong and Atlantic Airways direct. I frantically WhatsApp my agent in Hong Kong but he could not do anything. I sent an email to Atlantic Airways in vain. Anyway, after checking-in all passengers, the officer in charge came and decided to issue me a boarding pass. I fully appreciate his understanding and decision to override the information from the computer system. He has the quality of a responsible and smart manager. Second, it was a long wait at the airport. The incoming flight from Faroe Islands did not land till after 4 pm. We stood by the gate and ready to board around 5pm. But we could not get onboard till 6pm and had to sit inside the plane waiting for delivery of luggage for an hour. The flight did not take off till 7pm. (Part 1 of my UK leg)

A visit to Europe had never been on my itinerary when I set off for Mexico on January 30. Life is precarious and things can be totally out of control. This time, I unexpectedly make a round-the-world journey when I continue to travel east after my whale watching trip in in order to my sick godmother in Taunton.  

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