From Inverness back to Edinburgh

Last day on the road in Scotland, and it will be a busy one

First stop is the Blair Castle, the seat of the Duke of Atholl

 Then Stirling, where the first victory of the Scottish army, led by William Wallace, took place

New Lanark: this was once the largest cotton-spinning complex in Britain, but it was better known for the pioneering social experiments of Robert Owen, who managed the mill from 1800. An enlightened capitalist, he provided his workers with housing, a cooperative store, a school with adult education classes and a social center.

And because we are never far from this part of history in Scotland, Lanark is also the place where William Wallace grew up, fell in love, and killed the sheriff Hazelrigg, precipitating the War of Independence.


Time to head to Northern Ireland

Scotland in a few figures
0: number of sheep killed on the road / number of ghosts seen, in spite of the Ghosts tour in Edinburgh yesterday evening (which was great anyway, guided by someone who looked to be part of the Volturi clan) / number of brewery or distillery visited, I will have to catch up in Ireland / number of times I ate haggis, one challenge that won't be met
1: number of Jedi knights met during the journey
2: number of tennis champions met during the journey
3: number of ferries taken and I didn't get sea sick a single time, which is very good news after the adventures of May
7: number of days when the sun shone / number of days when it rained / number of castles where I took a break
15: number of minutes passed in the sauna on the ferry to Belfast
50 (+/- 10%): number of sheep avoided while driving / number of lochs I drove past
100 (+/- 10%): number of times I had to park on a passing place on a one track road
864: number of miles driven during the trip