Scotland, Day 4: Isle of Arran (17th November 2012)
"If you live to be a hundred, I want to live to be a hundred minus one day so I never have to live without you" - A.A. Milne, Winnie the Pooh
Although my memory has gone a
little rusty by this time, I easily recall Isle of Arran as the highlight of my
Scottish escapade - a day well spent on an enchanting island in the company of
two of my most favorite people - Rudmila and Intisar. I was already a little
glum that I did not have enough time to visit the famous Scottish highlands or
see the beauty of Inverness or Glen Coe, and hence when the opportunity to
spend a day in the Isle of Arran presented itself in the form of a trip
organized by the study abroad organization of the University of Glasgow, I was
beside myself with excitement.
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| View from the ferry: Start/end of a rainbow |
The Isle of Arran is the largest
island in the Firth of Clyde, and the seventh largest island in Scotland. Our
trip was a day-long excursion involving a bus ride from Glasgow and a short ferry
journey to the island. Intisar had arrived in Glasgow the night before, and the
three of us literally had to wake up at the crack of dawn to make it on time
for the bus. Once we were on board the MV Caledonian Isles ferry and had a
decent breakfast to quell our starving stomachs and caffeine to stir our sleepy
minds, we were finally awake and ready for the day. It was absolutely freezing
on the deck of the ferry, but the stunning beauty that engulfed us made the chillingly
windy ferry ride totally worth it!
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| Brodick Castle Gardens |
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| Freshwater stream |
The Isle of Arran is such a
breathtakingly beautiful place - the ruggedly mountainous landscape looming
around us and the untarnished natural surroundings were a refreshing change
from the canopy of urban jungle and suburban towns that we usually find
ourselves in. Freshwater streams ran down the mountains, and Highland cattle
lounged idly on the rough plains. The weather was surprisingly pleasant for a
winter day, I was glad we could take advantage of it. The bus took us around
various spots throughout the island, and we had time to get off at each spot
and explore a little bit before moving on to the next destination. Our first
destination within the Isle of Arran was Brodick Castle. We walked around the
gardens and visited the store, but since the castle itself was undergoing some
reconstruction we could not enter the building. Next we stopped by the Arran
Distillery in Lochranza before moving on to Lochranza Castle. My favorite spots
were the rocky beaches spread across the Isle - we stopped at a number of them
and took pictures. Looking out of the window during the bus rides, I was truly
mesmerized by the rough and colorful beauty of the mountainous backdrop,
sparsely populated countryside and splendid beaches. We stopped for lunch at a
small inn where we gobbled down as many sandwiches as we could, hungry from all
the walking yet loving every minute of it.
Dusk was almost approaching when we
arrived at our last destination, a small hotel next to a beach that I really
cannot recall the name of. We watched the sky turn crimson orange with the
setting sun, and finally headed off to the embark on the returning ferry just
before it started getting dark. It was one of those days you always cherish and
remember - we drank from freshwater streams, all three of us slipped on rocks
and fell, watched baby seals jump near the shore and enjoyed the splendor of
the setting sun near the beach. And of course, best friends make the experience
much, much more memorable!
