Highland Fling

Scotland has always been a dream destination for me. The landscape has always enchanted me and tartan has always been a favourite, both as a fashion accessory and as a decorative touch ( I had trimmed my room in tartan ribbon when I was a teenager). More recently Outlander has hit our screens and I have relished every minute of it, although I wont pretend the scenery was the only attraction (Sam Heughan certainly helps).

A page from our 19th Century book

I also love history and Scotland has this in spades. My husband's family hark back to Scotland, having arrived in Australia in the Second Fleet. The Milne's married into the Rose family who resided in Kilvarock Castle, and we have a wonderful handwritten book (see image above) detailing the history of Kilvarock including the time Bonnie Prince Charlie stopped by for an evening. 

So in a little over a week we are heading to the UK.  We will spend  few days in London (my husband and I have been before but its the first time for our kids) before hopping on the train to Edinburgh where we will be staying in the Old Town for a few days. On the agenda is Edinburgh Castle, The Royal Mile and some whisky tasting before driving to Loch Lomond to stay for a couple of days. We will go on towards the Highlands and I will tell you more about that next week. It goes without saying I have been scouring Pinterest looking for inspiration. Film locations for Outlander, historic book shops antique vendors, whiskey tastings, beautiful scenery and unique restaurants have featured heavily in my searches. The images above are from my board.(You can find my Pinterest board HERE )

Throughout our Scotland adventure we will be staying in AirBnBs. Those who know me well might be surprised at this, as a few years ago when I travelled to Los Angeles for a course I stayed at an Airbnb. The host was there during my stay and whilst the accommodation was beautiful, the host was well....I did think that I might wake up in an ice bath without my kidney. I am hoping that since I am not travelling alone that I wont feel like that again and we only stay in one place that has the host at home whilst we are there. I will keep you posted as we travel so stay tuned!

Next week I will let you know about the rest of the planned trip including our final destination in Cornwall in the south of England (hello Poldark country!) In the mean time if you have any tips or recommendations for our visit to London, Scotland or Cornwall let me know!

Caroline xxx