Monday 2 March 2015

This weekend I ventured off to Scotland with an AIFS group. I was expecting Scotland to be beautiful and to have a great time, and it was so much more than this. We started out in Edinburgh with a free night to explore the city. Meghan and I walked around and made it all the way to the Castle, where Mary Queen of Scots was held prisoner. It was beautiful to see at night when it was all lit up with the moon shining bright right behind it. This was also an incredible view of the city itself.     

The next day we got on a tour bus and began our three day tour around Scotland. My favorite stop of the day was this scenic hiking trail leading up to a waterfall, at Heritage Forest. It was truly beautiful—the fresh air felt amazing, and it kind of reminded me of home. We learned that the trees planted  in this forest and throughout Scotland are not native to the area. If you look at the ground, a lot of it is muddy and bare; this is because the trees planted here block out all of the sunlight, and the native plants cannot grow. Regardless, this was incredibly beautiful and nice  to be able to wander around for such a long time in nature again. 




Day three, even though it was incredibly cold, wet, and uncomfortable, it was by far my favorite. The bus driver gave us several challenges to do on various stops. The first was to walk across the Isle of Skye bridge, which connects the Isle of Skye to the mainland. It was really windy and pouring rain, so by the time we reached the other side we were all soaked! I thought it was fun though because I felt accomplished after walking the length of the bridge. We then stopped at the Sligachan River. This river has the legend that if you dunk your face in the water for seven seconds, you will be granted eternal beauty.This was our next challenge and I did it! The whole trip was a giant adventure! I actually liked being soaking wet and venturing around  the highlands—nature is quite something.   











   

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