Sterling Stirling

Well, the rain stopped in Plockton just before midnight and the bonfire (trying to catch a distant fire with my camera at night was rubbish) went off without a hitch.  I had questioned how they could be accurate enough to ignite it with rockets but Kenny is not stupid.  He had run wires from the pier to the pyre, which seemed to have had an accelerant added, and ran the rockets with no doubt of accuracy.  By half 12 the rain drove us back to the Inn where, as I expected to go to bed but I was invited to the after-hours celebration.  No arm twisting needed needless to say. The song Johnny MacAldo came to mind as” the beer and whisky flew”.  Much better than my earlier plan for Hogmanay in Edinburgh! Thanks to Mary, Kenny and Susan for a great stay and I wish all the staff and the  lads in the 5 O’clock Gang, especially my dear friend, Mr. Curly French, an happy and safe New Year. I could not have asked for a more comfortable and enjoyable time, although I will stay off Guinness & smoked seafood for a while until the intestinal concertina ceases to play.

So Monday, 2/1/2017 I took the 12:21 train for a 6+ hr trip to Inverness and then on to Glasgow.  I’ve stayed at the Victoria House before and whilst it is not far from Queen Street Station, it is a serious slog up some ridiculous hills that appear uphill in either direction whether coming or going.  The staff is nice, the rooms clean, the price is very good and the breakfast makes up for it’s averageness with quantity.

 

Tuesday was a nice day so I hopped on the train for the short run to Stirling to see the Castle. This is a very beautiful part of the Scottish countryside and the city itself is classic.

 

But to really appreciate the countryside one must view it from Stirling Castle.

And of course to see the Monument to William Wallace known unfortunately to many by the portrayal in the movie “Braveheart ” by the Aussie, Mel Gibson who looks nothing like the original. The best story of Wallace and The Bruce I have ever read is Jane Porter’s “Scottish Chiefs,”published in 1809, a critically acclaimed historical  novel and if not the first, one of the first by a female novelist.  It would have made a much better movie.

The monument was too far to get to on foot so I let the zoom do my walking.

The castle changed hands many times between the English and the Scots but in June of 1314 Robert the Bruce completely destroyed the English army at Bannockburn, a couple miles from the Castle.

Like all Scottish castles, it was built over centuries beginning with Alexander I in 1110 and like Edinburgh is built on a volcanic outcropping.

One of the exhibits in the castle concerns tapestries.  How they were made and why.  All more interesting than I would have have thought.

Including, of course, Unicorns.

Another thing to remember to do when visiting castles is to look up.  Serious ceilings!

The king’s bed don’t appear too comfy but the queens room was very nice.

The kitchen area was well depicted.

The Argyll & Sutherland Highlander’s Museum in the Castle had all the usual memorabilia but I was particularly taken by some of the paintings like “The Thin Red Line”, “Sinking of the Alexander” (I think is the name) and others.

And this classic photo

But the one that I liked the most was of Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II. Maybe not PC to say so but this is the best portrait of her I’ve  ever seen.