Scotland on the Road

ARRIVAL IN SCOTTISH TERRITORY!!!

Departure from Milan Malpensa at 12.05, arrival in Edinburgh at 14.15 local time. After collecting our luggage we go to rent the car. (I recommend taking full insurance coverage with 0 deductible, the unpaved roads and the animals left roaming free could be a problem, better to protect yourself.). We leave Edinburgh straight away, since we've decided to visit it in the future by dedicating a weekend to it, and we head towards Perth. Along the way we stop to visit Loch Level, where there's a castle on a small island in the middle of the lake. We only manage to admire it from the shore because the last crossing of the day had already left. Once we arrive in Perth we immediately look for our accommodation, Petra's B&B. At these times the sat nav is very useful.

We find ourselves in front of a classic white house with a splendid garden in bloom!! The location is ideal, just outside the centre. In fact, as soon as we'd settled our things in the beautiful rooms we take a nice walk around the centre of Perth. Before looking for a place to eat we take a stroll around the centre to visit the historical attractions (cathedral). Then with Guide in hand (Looney Planet) we find with difficulty (given that it's Saturday and the football championship has started) a restaurant called KERACHERS. Here we were able to enjoy excellent duck, salmon and various desserts. A very chic place, where everyone is very kind, with excellent value for money since they charge based on the number of dishes you order. When you find this formula, it's worth eating at least 2 dishes per person since a single dish turns out to be more expensive.

After dinner we couldn't miss the little stop to drink whisky and beer in a classic Scottish pub. We stopped at the Dickens, a pub all in wood with references to the books of the writer of the same name. Thus ends our first day in Scotland.

SECOND DAY

Wake-up at 7:30!!! There's an inviting smell of food around the house. At 8:00 everyone at the table for the abundant Scottish breakfast rigorously prepared by the landlady! The plate is composed as follows: fried egg, 2 sausages, 2 slices of bacon, half a grilled tomato, mushrooms, beans and black pudding. All surrounded by a buffet with milk, cereals, toast, butter, jams, fruit juice, coffee and tea at will!!! Having loaded up on energy, we set off to visit the castles in the area. At the ticket office we decide to buy a single ticket (Treasure Ticket) that allows us entry to several castles in the area (Blair Castle - Scone Palace - Glamis Castle - The Famous Grouse Experience - Bell's Blair Athol Distillery) for the modest price of £18.00 per person (very convenient when you think that each individual castle would cost £8.00).

We begin our tour with SCONE PALACE, full of furnished rooms all explained with descriptive panels also in Italian. Outside there's a splendid garden where there is also a hedge maze. Second stop GLAMIS CASTLE: the visit to the castle is guided in groups of 30 people. The guide is English but they hand out a manual in Italian. Very beautiful as a castle, furnished rooms, large gardens to visit and an atmosphere created by bagpipers walking around the gardens! Third stop BELL'S BLAIR ATHOL DISTILLERY: here too you enter in groups and a very friendly guide explains the whole process for making whisky and shows you the entire distillery (in every room there are signs explaining everything also in Italian). Once the tour is finished, you stop at the little shop where they let you taste their product. The distillery is very beautiful and worth a stop.

Fourth stop BLAIR CASTLE: a very beautiful castle, famous for its hunting room, which is the first room you come across. The visit in this castle is self-guided and in every room there are descriptive sheets in all languages. We conclude our tour in the ballroom... another room that leaves us astonished!! Having finished the indoor tour, we stroll through the gardens which offer a thousand outdoor activities (horse riding around the castle, enclosures with animals, playgrounds etc..). Having finished our tour we head to Aviemore, a small mountain town very popular in winter with winter sports enthusiasts. Here we have booked a four-person room at the Youth Hostel. A very clean and comfortable hostel even though breakfast is not included. Given the good location of the accommodation, we walk to visit the town to find a nice place to eat.

We stop at the Skii-ing doo, a very nice and distinctive place run by a Spaniard who offers international dishes. We end the evening in a pub on the road leading to the hostel.