Are you ready for more Scotland photos? The one day we did a full day tour started with a view of the famous rail bridge that goes over the Firth of Forth into the Kingdom of Fife. It took me almost the whole trip to be able to say that correctly. A Firth is like an inlet or bay and the name of this bay is Forth and on the North side of the Firth is the Kingdom of Fife. Which apparently people from Fife are like Texans... they are from the US but they are 1st and foremost Texans... and thats how people from Fife are... They are from Fife and Scotland but Fife always comes first.
Our next stop was Dunfermline which is where Robert the Bruce (The Hero King) is buried. Although his heart is else where his body is buried in this church. Also in the church yard is where William Wallace's mother is said to be buried and because Wallace was drawn and quartered there is rumors that 1/4 of his body is here as well.
Our next stop was Bannockburn where Robert the Bruce fought a very important battle in Scotland's war of independence. This statue of Bruce is said to be a very accurate representation of what he truly looked like as it was designed using a scan of his scull and computer programs to create what he would have looked like.
This is Sterling Castle:
After spending 2+ hours around Sterling we traveled south to Rosslyn Chapel- which by the way before you ask- i did not see the holy grail, they didn't let us see what is in the vaults and the library that is shown to be in the basement of the chapel in the movie isn't there- that was a studio in LA. But it was beautiful none the less.
* you are not supposed to photograph inside the chapel which because I walked around outside first I didn't know and got this one photo before being scolded* Glad my exposure was correct I kinda love this shot*
Silas did give me a little bit of a look when I made him stop and wait for me to take photos of a wedding dress designer store in Edinburgh the next day. I couldn't help it- they were so pretty in the windows and I was still in the wedding mindset. Caroline Castigliano makes some beautiful gowns.
Another dinner at The Granary- this time we sat by the fire place and had leather club chairs... such a great atmosphere- and my husband provides a good view too ;) 
Our very cute little rental car... Silas looks like a giant in it plus it's strange because not only do you drive on the other side of the road in the UK the driver is on the other side of the car- thankfully the gas and break are still in the same place.
Everywhere we went we saw "To Let" signs- which means "for rent" but the first time we saw one we were laughing because it looks like they just forgot the 'I' in toilet.
We took our little rental car up to St. Andrews and spent some time walking about the St. Andrews Castle ruins as well as the old Abbey and the town itself which is so cute!!! Silas's favorite thing about the castle was the mine. During a siege of this castle the attackers dug a mine to try to get under the walls of the castle, well the occupants of the castle figured out their plan and dug a counter mine to intercept them. The coolest thing is that you can actually walk down into to mine still. I was surprised at how "at your own risk" things in Scotland were. They didn't seem to mind sending people down into a cold, dark, stone cave that you almost have to belly crawl through. Once we were over at the Abbey we were so supposed that you could walk anywhere, no restrictions to paths or anything.
I'm hoping to find this cider somewhere in the states... it's from Sweden and it's delicious!
It's just amazing how old things in Scotland are. We think about a house from the 1700's being old here in New England and this church tower is from the 12th century.
After 5 wonderful days with Edinburgh as our home base we took off in our little rental car and headed north west to the Isle of Skye. On our way I wanted to stop in Fort Williams to take the Harry Potter Train (the actual train they used in filming the journey to Hogwarts). Plus even though Silas isn't a huge HP fan like I am you get some great views, a fun train ride and we got to spend a little time in this awesome little fishing town of Mallaig. Which is were we had the best lunch and possibly meal of our whole trip (sweet and sour shrimp, scallops with some cream sauce that was heaven and monkfish with a red pepper relish- ugh my mouth is watering just thinking about it).
I'd say this house is a little out in the middle of no where for my taste but talk about a peaceful setting.
This photo kind of sucks as I got part of the train window in the frame but I just loved the old church- I wish I had been able to stop and get a good shot but sadly I was not in charge of the train- so this is what ya get.
These beaches are known for their "silver sand". Looks almost tropical.
Mallaig:
On the trip back I was able to get a good HP shot ;)
LOOK it's Loch Ness :)
We did not see Nessy but Loch Ness is absolutely beautiful!!! We did however see two girls trying to swim in the loch... and trust me it was COLD they didn't last too long.
Another Loch along the drive up to Skye.
There are waterfalls EVERYWHERE- every hill side you look at you see these little white wiggly lines... all waterfalls. 
This is Eilean Donan Castle which is one of the most photographed castles in Scotland, which might have to do with is' beautiful setting, you know that jutting out into a Loch with the stone bridge... 
This is the view from our hotel for the night up in Stein which is in the north of Skye. This little town has about 4 buildings. The food at the Stein Inn (which is the oldest Inn on the Isle) was wonderful, it was the only place that we had a king size bed, we had to close the curtains to sleep because it was still twilight at 10:45pm and while driving the one lane road up to the town we saw a Sea Eagle which was really cool- sadly no photos of him.
Thats the whole town of Stein- quaint don't you think?
Don't worry there are still two more full days of photos to share!!! XOXO Spring
