Day 2: Adventures in Scotland

Day 2: Adventures in Scotland started very early. There is so much to see and do in Stirling Council, and I wanted to see as much as possible! With the chance to see Pictish slabs, Kilmadock church and cemetery was the first stop on our way to National Wallace Monument. Unfortunately, even though we searched, we didn’t see anything THAT old in the cemetery. It was a lovely stop anyway! I had my heart set on getting at least one good picture of Doune Castle. The Doune Roman Hill Fort was also on my wish list. I was delighted that it was a very short walk from the parking lot to both Doune Castle and the Roman Hill Fort!

The content of history contained in the Hall of Arms is phenomenal. In fact, The Hall of Heroes and The Royal Chamber were also well worth the terror of the steps!

If you are wondering, William Wallace’s sword truly is as long as it looks! It is 5′ 6″ long, so he had to be well over 6′ tall to carry it!

We were blessed with the most amazing weather for our day in Stirling. The views from The Crown of the monument were truly incredible, as I knew they would be! I was fine while enjoying the 360* views, but then then I had to go back down.

Our next destination was getting lunch. Our Callander Airbnb host recommended Stephens Bakery. It was on our way to the Old Stirling Bridge. We enjoyed a delicious, properly Scottish repast at Stephens.

There are no pictures of my meals. The food in Scotland was so amazing that I didn’t even think about taking pictures until it was too late! In fact, I have to wonder about people who take pictures of their food. Either it isn’t as tempting as they claim, or this is actually their second meal!

I was delighted to find that I didn’t have the same food allergies and sensitivities in Scotland that I have here in the U.S. I ate all the wheat, grains, legumes, sugar, and dairy that I wanted without any problem.

We were glad that we went with our food experts’ suggestion, even though we had planned to eat at the bakery next to the Stirling Old Bridge.

We had time for a quick exploration of Mars Wark and Stirling Old Town Cemetery before our Walking Tour.

Thanks to National Trust for Scotland (NTSUSA) membership we had 4 hours of parking at Stirling Castle. As well as getting into the sites for free, members also get free, or discounted, parking. The longer you are in Scotland, the more you appreciate this! Parking is premium in Scotland. Be prepared to pay for parking pretty much everywhere. Also be prepared to walk once you do find available parking.

Stirling Castle and Edinburgh Castle are two places that you want to book your visit as soon as possible. (Tips #3 & #4) The bookings open 3 months in advance. When you book, you are given a 30 minute time slot to arrive. Depending on how busy they are, you may be able to get in earlier. You may lose your booking if you arrive late.

Wherever a guide book was available, I got one. I have enjoyed reviewing my time at each of the places and finding new information that I missed. Plus beautiful professional pictures are included in the guide books. That is especially important for the places where taking pictures was not allowed.

The ending of the day in Stirling may seem a little anti-climatic. It was after 6pm when we finally left Stirling Castle. Both of us were tired, hungry, and wanting to relax at our AirBnB. We stopped at a Tesco that was more the size of our Walmart on the way back. Oh. My. Goodness. We discovered the most delicious Isle of Mull cheese. Actually, we ended up eating a lot of Scottish cheeses and ‘biscuits’. Otherwise known as ‘crackers’ here in the U.S. Neither of us wanted to eat what we could easily get at home. We were in Scotland, we wanted to experience proper Scottish fare!