Last Day - Back to Dublin

Beautiful Marina near Dublin.

Even the locals are enjoying the weather - cool and breezy but the sunshine made it feel warm!

One last fish and chips!

Scotland!

Ferry from Northern Ireland to Scotland. Only a 2 hour ride, but an amazing way to travel!

Welcome to the Highlands!

Who says Scotland is cloudy and rainy??

Somewhere in these mountains is Glen Coe.

Our first taste of Haggis - deep fried with red onion marmalade...yum!

Some sort of baked potato and mushroom pie - delicious! Although there seems to be an abundance of gravy...

Our B&B in Fort William - centrally located in the Caledonian Canal. Glennis and Ian were excellent hosts!

The breakfast "conservatory" at the B&B. We had a great view of Ben Nevis - the highest point in Britain. The garden in the back led right up to the canal and locks - an impressive series of locks dubbed "Neptune's Staircase". 

Porridge!

Lock Ness

Spud the piper! He plays for tourists at a rest stop near Lock Ness. Before he got his pipes out of his car, he was telling these silly Americans about the one time he played for Madonna. He's a sassy and snarky bloke. As we waved goodbye from the car, he switched from "Scotland the Brave" to "Yankee Doodle" just for fun. I think we made a friend!

Eilean Donan Castle - lots of tourists, but beautiful!

Isle of Skye

More sheep in the road!

Moo

Highland cattle are the laid back hippie version of dairy cows.

In the distance: Old Man of Storr

Lots of little waterfalls and streams coming down from the mountains

Day 2 in Scotland: Oban

Trying some new seafood - very fresh! We were adventurous, and everything was delicious.

Fresh seafood platter - smoked salmon, shrimped, crab, herring, squid, whelk, and all kinds of other things we couldn't identify.

We toured the Oban whiskey distillery. Very interesting! This distillery, while one of the most notable in Scotland, only employs seven people to make whiskey.

Late evening ride to dinner.

The Glenfinnan Viaduct traversed by the Jacobite Steam Train. As made popular by the Hogwarts Express...

Prince's House Hotel - highly recommended by our hosts. The chef only serves a limited menu of what he can source fresh that day.

The day's menu is posted on the chalkboard by the bar.

Sticky toffee pudding with homemade whiskey ice cream - AMAZING!

Antrim: Glens, Gardens, and Waterfalls

Authentic "Ulster Fry" breakfast at one of our favorite B&Bs: The Meadows in Cushendall. Ann was a wonderful host and cook!

Morning mist on the mountains as we set out to explore the glens.

One of the most photographed places in Ireland: The Dark Hedges. Very cool!

A stray lamb in the road. Mom felt bad for him and decided herd him back into the pasture.

The gardens at Glenarm castle.

More nice gardens on the castle grounds - we couldn't have asked for better weather!!

Native orchid.

The outdoor tea area at the gardens - seriously I don't know why everyone says Ireland is rainy and cloudy. We all ended the day with sunburn!

Lunch - lentil and bacon soup with a ham and cheese "toastie" (grilled sandwich).

Gorgeous mountain views everywhere.

Wild foxglove on a downhill hike to view waterfalls.

Tall waterfall!

At the bottom of the trail...a pub!!! Mom even brought the car to the pub so we never had to hike back up the hill! Maybe cheating, but the Guinness was good, and we're on vacation!

Dinner at Harry's in Cushendall - Fish and Chips with mushy peas. This was one of our favorites - yum!