Thursday 13 September 2018

Scotland Day 2

The A9 is a long long road. I set off from Pitlochry after breakfast and got back onto the A9 to carry on driving north. Pulling in a layby to take this photo, I then drove over the bridge to carry on my journey.  
I knew I had plenty of time so I took a detour of a couple of miles and went into Dornoch for a break and a look around. This is the Cathedral.

Next to it on the green was this lovely cottage


This was a nice surprise to see, remember painting stones? On the ground in front of the museum were lots of painted stones, with pathways between them so you could walk around and read all the messages.


They told the story of a fishing boat disaster and the many lives which were lost. I wondered if the stones were real because they were so big, so I lifted one, and yes it was real.





At last I arrived in Scrabster on the north coast, and went to the dock. My boat was due to sail at 7pm. I got in the queue and waited to be waved on. All parked up and doors locked I climbed the stairs to the passenger decks.


It had started to rain, so it wasn't a good idea to go out on the sun deck, ha ha, no sun, just heavy rain. One and a half hours later we were pulling in at Orkney. The crew were getting ready to tie up the boat ready for disembarkation.

Oooh, it's looking murky out there, a complete contrast to the sunny days which have followed me all the way from home.

I had directions from my friends Ian and Christine to get to their house, it was 14 miles away. No easy task to find it in the dark. I made a wrong turn and had to ring and ask for help. Finally I got there in pitch black, guided by Ian flashing the porch light on and off so I could see it from down the road. It had been a long drive, 554 miles from door to door. Looking forward to my holiday on Orkney Island.  ilona

17 comments:

  1. Wow, you're having a really big adventure, Ilona! Have a wonderful time.

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  2. Delighted you’ve had a holiday and it’s great that you’ve been to Orkney. Really looking forward to seeing the photos.

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  3. Quite resourceful of your friend to flash the lights. Hope the rain stops.

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  4. I have just returned from a holiday in Orkney , you will love it !

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  5. A visit to the Italian chapel on Orkney is well worth it if you have time.

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  6. What a drive! Worth it though. Enjoy your holiday x

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  7. What a lovely adventure you are having and so pleased to see you have got to your friends home.

    Love, Hazel c uk

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  8. The A9 is a notoriously dangerous road. Just this morning, Radio Scotland reported yet another fatality. Before they built the bridge, it was a long,long way round! Dornoch Cathedral is where Madonna and Guy Ritchie had their nuptials. I wish your friends could have come to meet and greet you. You did very,very well making that long,long journey alone. Enjoy Orkney. Really fantastic places to visit.

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  9. Wonderful photos Ilona...infact I will go as far to say,they are the best Ive ever seen..telling the story of your journey.The bridge,the cottage,the fishermens stones,the boat....and the view of the harbour made me feel as though I was living it myself.That harbour photo made the hairs on my arms standup!.Such a strange feeling as though I knew the place,although Ive never been there.I would have that harbour photo enlarged and framed if it was mine!xx

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  10. How did they put the writing on the stones ?

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  11. Amazing. Scotland is beautiful. Looking forward to seeing more photos of your holiday.

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  12. Fabulous Ilona, right in the middle of 'twitching' season too, hope you've got your binoculars with you for any rarities that turn up! Have a great time.

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  13. Ps Lovely wool shop on the High Street in Kirkwall!

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  14. Love Orkney but it takes a long time to get there even from Glasgow area. There is such a.lot to see, enjoy

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  15. A really long way to go! So looking forward to the Orkney photos. Great that you had something exciting planned after your art exhibition.

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  16. For the first time, I travelled the east coast of Scotland last year, and whilst it receives much less praise than the west coast, it seems under rated. I thought it was really beautiful. There are pretty villages, lovely little harbours and wonderful sandy beaches. Even the smallest places are bedecked with flowers and the roads put ours in England to shame. The quality of life in Scotland looks very good to me.

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