Community Corner
Your Travel Specialist On: Scotland, The British Open 2015
With the British Open being held at St Andrews,in the Kingdom of Fife on July 13-20 next year, you should be booking now if you intend to go
With the British Open Golf Tournament being held at St Andrews, in the Kingdom of Fife on July 13-20 next year, you should be booking now if you intend to go.
There is only one other place in the entire world which I think can compete with Scotland for fishing, golf, scenery, hiking, and food, and that is New Zealand. I’ve heard more bagpipes in the South Island of New Zealand than when I go home to visit family.
I’ve been back to Scotland 155 times since I married a good looking U.S. Marine Major some 45 years ago, and since I am a New Zealand specialist, I’ve been there close to 75 times so I know both countries extremely well. You definitely need the help and advice from a destination specialist when visiting at such a busy time.
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After the golf tournament, why don’t you go to my part of the land, Inverness and the Highlands. This is a large area of mountain ranges, with different clans. My father, a McDonald from the Isle of Skye could look at someone wearing a kilt and from the tartan, tell you what his name was.
Talk about a small world, I was invited several years ago to give a lecture to 3,000 people at an International Travel Conference in Las Vegas and of course, wore my kilt and matching lavender cashmere jumper since I was giving a presentation on Scotland. Before I even went onto the stage, a man came up to me and said – you are a McDonald from Skye. He recognized the tartan. I think a lot of people came up to me afterwards just to have a close look at my brooch, antique silver holding a bird’s foot –Ptarmigan grouse which is a good luck symbol from the clan. I was in a lift once in San Francisco wearing my kilt and a little boy stayed at my brooch and said – “what happened to the rest of the bird” and I said “I ate it.
As I got out of the lift, he shouted, you are a mean and nasty cruel lady.
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Some of my favorite places to stay are Glencoe House, a place you must see because of the historic sites, the Torridon , at Achnasheen, another great location. I love castles and gardens and Cawdor Castle along with Dunrobin Castle, Brodie Castle and Eilean Donan at the Kyle of Lochalsh are worth going to.
My father’s favorite whisky was Glenmorangie and a visit to the distillery in Tain is one of the best. He took a “wee dram” (little sip) every time he tee’d off, and he said he played better. I tried it one time when it was cold and starting to snow and all I wanted to do was sing. Can’t remember what happened to my golf score.
Some of the roads in the highlands are one lane, so you have to be careful driving and sometimes pull over to let the other car pass.
The best garden of all is Inverewe near Poolewe on the West Coast. It is remote, but worth going to. There is a gulf stream which passes this coastline, and Osgood Mackenzie, a Victoria laird saw the potential and transformed a barren shoreline into one of the enduring jewels in the crown of the National Trust for Scotland. He planted tropical plants and trees from all over the world which surprisingly survive the harsh cold climate of the north.
Great restaurants in the region are Rocpool Restaurant, Inverness, Glencoe Café in Balachulish, Ben Nevis Inn in Fort William, Na Mara Restaurant at Gairloch, and the Waverley Restaurant at Kyle of Lochalsh. Do try and go to a ceilidh (Kaylee) which is a fun evening of Scottish music. Many of the traditional pub’s will have one. Best fiddle music you will ever hear.
When you have done this holiday, go back another year and visit the islands. Lewis and Harris, Skye, and many more. If you are really looking for something unusual, go visit the Orkney Islands, and the Shetlands off the East Coast of Scotland. They have a lot of Scandinavian culture in them since they are closer to Norway, and the Vikings used to fight with them regularly.
Maureen Jones
Maureen Jones is president of All Horizons Travel at 160 Main Street, Los Altos. Members of her staff are experts in business travel, cruises, and all types of leisure.
Previous columns by Maureen:
Your travel specialist on: Themed River Cruises
Islay, A whisky lover’s delight!
Your Local Travel Expert On: Different Perspectives of Australia
photo courtesy of golf.com