It seems strange to me that a couple of months have passed since I visited Scotland. But it is true! It has been a crazy and busy time but my memories of the most lovely and idyllic holiday remain. After our first day in which I took a walk around Lock Monzievaird, we drove on down to the nearby town of Crieff to see what there was to do.
Crieff has a Tourist Information Centre which appears to be housed in an old church. The ladies at the Centre are incredibly helpful and they really take the time to help each visitor plan their time in the area.
We left with loads of pamphlets and ideas and also a map showing us the way to the Crieff Visitor Centre back on the road to Loch Monzievaird.
Crieff is a market town and is famous for being a major cattle droving hub for hundreds of years. I really loved the creepy architectural style of the town (and I mean ‘creepy’ in the best, most admiring kind of way!)
In the week that we were in Scotland, we spent most of our time in the council area of Perth and Kinross. A ‘council area’ is similar to a county in England and it is a local government administrative area. Perth and Kinross crosses the southern boundary of the Scottish Highlands so while we didn’t get to see huge mountains or majestic waterfalls, we did get to see breathtaking views wherever we went. We visited Crieff, Aberfeldy and Pitlochry and you just had to look down the side streets to see incredible views like the one above.
We were rather amused to discover a dedicated Christmas store in Crieff. The store is open all year round and we were amazed that they manage to stay in business! I imagine the tourist trade helps somewhat as we certainly couldn’t resist buying personalised gifts for all of the grandchildren, nieces and godchildren in the family.
Their prices were really good too so perhaps that accounts for them staying in business!
One of the biggest attractions to Scotland is their food and drink. I didn’t sample nearly enough of those in my time in Scotland and that is one of the biggest reasons why I intend to return!
We did visit the divine J L Gill Whiskies and Cheese shop which was a lovely little shop full of… you guessed it, whisky and cheese. I bought a lovely little orange and port pâté and I wished that I drank more whisky as they had a really impressive selection.
And so with map in hand, the five intrepid travellers set off for Crieff Visitor Centre.
You have been very fortunate in having a blue sky while out and about taking these photos. Lovely capture.
ReplyDeleteHope you have a great start to your week!
Many thanks for visiting Norwich Daily Photo and leaving your comment. Come visit again tomorrow!
Some of the whiskey and cheese shops throughout Scotland are just blissful *sighs happily*
ReplyDeleteI haven't been to Crieff, but I do know Pitlochry. And I will have a look at the Scotland Here and Now blog, many thanks.
I'm going to be in Scotland in a couple of weeks. So much to explore there. Oh and yes Cherie Blair is really that crazy. It was all true.
ReplyDeletewhat a beautiful place, and I LOVE the photos. I someday wish to visit Scotland.
ReplyDeleteYay Emm...such a fab post..and looks dazzling and beautiful to me..i would love to go there..maybe one day!! Gorgeous pictures..beautiful scenery!lovely!
ReplyDeleteKiki~
This makes me nostagic for sure. There's nothing as evocative as pale blue Scottish skies, espcially as they can be rare. I walked the West Highland Way once with a group of friends and woke up every morning to breathtaking views.
ReplyDeleteDid you have chance to visit the fish ladder in Pitlochry? I spent ages watching, but didn't see any fish :-(
ReplyDeleteLooking at your pictures, I realise how much I miss the views. It's so very flat where we live now.
ReplyDeletenice post - lovely photos make me homesick for my former home town
ReplyDeleteWhat a beautiful place! I might add that to my list of places to go when I get the chance to do my traveling.
ReplyDeleteFantastic shots, especially the second one.
Hope you're having a nice day!
Big hugs!
B xx
Lovely pictures of such great buildings with so many details. I think you had a wonderful time walking there with your camera:-)
ReplyDeleteThanks for all your nice comment. Wish you a nice week!
Looks like a great place to have a wee break from the madness of London. Looking at your pics reminds me how easy it was to jump in the car and escape the city when I was back home in the Aberdeen.
ReplyDeleteMany years ago I remember attempting to drive form Perth to Fort William in a blizzard...such fun.
Next time you will have to head right up into the Highlands of Scotland. The Grampian Mountains or over Fort William way, it is truly stunning there...
@ Joy: We were in Scotland in early September and we were very, very lucky! There was sunshine every day!
ReplyDelete@ Hels: Aaah, well hopefully you'll like my post on Pithlochry then!
@ Mo: I see you enjoyed your time in Scotland enough to stay an extra few days!
@ And Miles To Go & Victoria: Scotland is exquisite and well worth a visit. In fact, I might recommend it over England if you had to choose.
@ David L Macaulay: That must have been amazing!
@ John: Aaah, no. We went to all of these places without a guide book so we just saw what we saw, if that makes sense. I'l have to go back to Pithlochry and look for the fish ladder.
@ Sheila: I totally get that feeling. I get it when I see South African vistas. I get a feeling not unlike vertigo where I wonder what I've done moving over here.
@ David: I hope I did your home town justice!
@ Betty: Have you been to Scotland? It is great!
@ Spiderdama: Thank you! I did indeed enjoy it.
@ Wiliam: Oh, there will definitely be a next time. I couldn't believe how much there was to do just driving a different direction each day. And we only saw the tiniest bit of Scotland. I want to go further north next time though, to see waterfalls and the Highlands!