Tag Archives: Scotland

booze tourism

Part 9… Sunday morning at Kilchoman Distillery…

I mentioned in a previous post that Bill and I aren’t church people.  But we sure felt the spirit on Sunday morning, March 20th, when we visited Kilchoman Distillery on Islay.  After a hearty breakfast at the Columba restaurant, many intrepid whisky enthusiasts clambered off the Hebridean Princess and back on the old schoolbus with the busted seatbelts and boogers for a trip for one of Scotland’s newest distilleries.  The drive to Kilchoman was breathtakingly beautiful as we passed many fields of grazing sheep, lightning fast hares, wandering partridges, and majestic herds of deer.

We were originally scheduled to visit the Bowmore Distillery, but for some reason, that plan was changed in favor of Kilchoman.  I am mostly glad we went there.  I say mostly because I suspect that I picked up a nasty stomach bug at the Kilchoman Distillery.  I will explain more about that later.  For now, I will just say that I forgot my education at this lovely place as a very friendly staffer hopped on our bus near the distillery and guided us in.

The Kilchoman Distillery was founded in 2005.  It was the first distillery to be built on Islay in 124 years.  It is one of six Scottish distilleries still doing floor maltings (and I guess we must have seen two of the others during our cruise) and is unique in that all steps of the whisky making process are done on Islay.  Our guide, Leha, explained that the owners had just purchased the adjacent farm, giving them plenty of room to grow their own barley and feed whatever’s leftover from the whisky making process to the farm’s own livestock.

More barley malting…

Another kiln…

We were a little delayed waiting for people to use the restroom, which wasn’t such a good thing.  The staff at the distillery had made fresh scones for us.  One group enjoyed the scones while the rest of us toured the facility.  We were supposed to flip flop, but ran short of time.  I managed to grab a scone to go, anyway.

Spirit safe.

Here’s where things get a bit sketchy, though.  At one point, Leha pulled a metal tubelike container out of one of the tanks.  It was full of wort.  She passed it around and invited people to try it.  Though I had tried the wort at Laphroaig (whose staffers were kind enough to put it in little plastic communion cups for us), Leha simply passed the metal tube around.  And I was dumb enough to try it.  I think this is where I ended up picking up the stomach bug that made things go so awry on the last day.  I don’t know for certain, but my guess is that I am not the only one who paid for that mistake.

I’m mostly pretty good about hygiene, especially on cruise ships.  I wash my hands and use the alcohol cleansers, although those are not effective against Norovirus.  I usually only share glasses with Bill.  But I forgot myself while I was on this distillery tour and I think that’s what caused me to get so sick; not coming from the UK, I was not used to the bug that invaded my body so quickly.  It didn’t even have to be someone from our cruise that spread the germ.  Norovirus can survive a long time without a host.  I hasten to add, I don’t even know that I definitely had Norovirus, but I sure had all the symptoms of it.  And based on how long it took for me to get sick, then Bill, I have a feeling I got it at Kilchoman and then spread it to him and perhaps a few other unlucky people.

I thought the bottling machine was pretty cool.  Also, I was surprisingly interested in how they came to choose their distinctive bottles.

Apparently, it’s hard to break those suckers, even when you drop them.

Sample time.  Besides whisky, Kilchoman makes a liqueur that I immediately dubbed a “lady’s drink”.  

It is possible that I got sick on the ship or somewhere else, but remembering what I did during the cruise, I really think I got the bug when I tasted the wort at Kilchoman.  It takes a minute amount of the virus to infect someone and that seems like the most obvious time it would have happened.

But just because I got a stomach bug, that doesn’t mean I didn’t enjoy the tour and Kilchoman’s products immensely.  In fact, Bill was very excited to pick up a bottle of Kilchoman to take home with us.  It may be awhile before I want to drink any whisky, but I bet he’ll be opening it soon.  And, if anyone from Kilchoman reads this, I loved visiting your facility.  I just hope you’ll follow Laphroaig’s lead and provide little individual cups for people who want to taste the wort.  And, I also hope I learned my lesson in hygiene.  Fat lot of good that master’s degree in public health did me!  The wort isn’t even that tasty, though on the bright side, at least my immune system got some practice.

Unfortunately, we were a bit rushed out of Kilchoman.  We had to get back to the ship because we were headed for the Jura Distillery that afternoon.  Jura is another island.  But, at least until I started hurling a couple of days later, I had a glowing impression of Kilchoman and my experience there taught me to remember not to drink from communal containers.

Bill’s butternut squash soup.

More seafood for me…

I had a smoked salmon sandwich.

Bill had Irish stew.

Rice pudding for Bill.

Ice cream for me.  I was blissfully oblivious about what was coming.

 
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Part 8… Finally, a new island for us! Islay!

There are many distilleries on Islay, so it makes sense that our next stop on our whisky cruise would be on Islay.  However, because we were coming from Kintyre, we had some distance to travel before it would be time for another distillery tour.  We spent Saturday morning cruising past Northern Ireland on the way to our next stop, the Laphroaig Distillery.  Laphroaig is a well-known whisky and when I posted that we were headed there, I got a few likes from friends, as well as a spelling lesson.  It’s not so easy to spell Laphroaig properly, you know.

Bill and I took the opportunity to enjoy some local-ish beers offered on the ship, as well as try a gin that was new to us called Isle of Harris.  I had to point this out to an old friend of mine from Virginia whose last name happens to be Harris.  After lunch, we anchored in Port Ellen.  I was excited because I had heard about Islay, but had never actually been there.  Iain, the hottie hotel manager, came from Islay and told us where he grew up.  Apparently, everyone on that island knows each other.  This was later confirmed to me when Bill and I were in England and happened to run into an Englishman with ties to Islay.  He said he went there once, mentioned his family name to a bartender, and the bartender called up his relatives and they later showed up at the bar to drink with him.

We were loaded up on a truly *shocking* bus.  It appeared to be a school bus with a big sign at the front demanding that everyone wear seatbelts.  However, all of the seatbelts appeared to be badly damaged.  I noticed the upholstery on the seats was torn and poorly repaired with duct tape.  Then I noticed food stains and dried boogers smeared on the seatbacks.  Apparently, we were using a schoolbus!  Never mind, it got the job done.  Some of the cruisers weren’t interested in the whisky distillery, so they went to see Kildalton Cross and walk around Port Ellen.  The rest of us went to taste more whisky.

More barley malting…  Laphroaig has much of theirs trucked in.

Peat, which gives Laphoaig its distinctive flavor…

And another kiln…

The Laphroaig Distillery has an interesting history which I read about on the display boards in the visitor’s center.  Our group was divided into two groups.  I am sad to say that I don’t remember our tour guide’s name, but he was a very knowledgeable and entertaining chap.  He had been told that we knew about the whisky making process, so he simply showed us around the distillery and allowed us to taste the wort.  A wort is basically the same stuff one uses to make beer.  In fact, all whisky starts out as beer before it turns into spirits.

The Duke and Duchess…

Stainless steel tanks as opposed to the oak ones we saw at many other distilleries…

The spirit safe.

Like Springbank, Laphroaig was in the middle of malting barley.  Once again, we were shown how it’s done, though it appeared to me that Laphroaig has a slightly more sophisticated system all the way around.  I noticed a couple of shots of Prince Charles and Duchess Camilla on the walls, indicating that they had paid a visit.  Also, a lone stag passed us as we walked through the distillery.

After we toured the distillery, we visited Kildalton Cross, where I managed to take some really beautiful photos of Islays’ stark and haunting landscape.  Bill commented to me that he’d like to find a self-catering cottage on Islay and just hang out there for a week.  I’d be up for that myself.  It really is a beautiful place and there are plenty of other distilleries there that we didn’t see, namely Bowmore and Ardbeg.  We were supposed to see the Bowmore Distillery, but that was replaced at the last minute.

I like to buy music when I take trips, so instead of buying whisky, I purchased a couple of new CDs from Laphroaig’s gift shop.  I have now listened to both of them twice and really enjoy them, though I had never heard of the performers before I bought their music.  That night turned out to be pretty musical anyway, since Angela Paterson and her violin playing friend Fiona showed up to perform for the passengers after we’d had dinner.  Bill and I only stayed for about a half an hour.  That’s not a reflection on the quality of their playing.  I thought the ladies were very talented and I would have liked to have stayed longer.  However, Bill was nodding off and I was pretty tired myself.  I usually spend a lot of time by myself, so it can be taxing to spend the whole day around people.

I heard that after an hour or so, people started dancing to the music.  I wish I could have seen and/or participated in that.  I did, however, take away some inspiration from the musicians who played after we visited Port Ellen…

I learned “Wild Mountain Thyme” after hearing it performed on Hebridean Princess.

Credit the call of nature for my getting this shot…

Kildalton Cross…

John, our guide, and the lovely musicians from Islay.  I think that was the only time I ever saw John wearing pants as opposed to his kilt.

I just learned “Wild Mountain Thyme” today, thanks to Angela and Fiona…  

Laphroaig casks!

Stags!



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whisky distilleries

Part 7… Springbank Distillery in Campbeltown…

Bill and I visited the Springbank Distillery in 2012 on our second Hebridean cruise.  Naturally, we visited again in March 2016 on our third scotch whisky themed Hebridean cruise.  Springbank Distillery is kind of a special place because it represents one of the last of a dying breed.  In the early 1900s, Campbeltown was a bustling place where many Campbeltown whiskies were made.  Thanks to Prohibition in the United States and advancing technology, the vast majority of Campbeltown whiskies died out.  Springbank remains and is one of only two distilleries in Scotland to perform every step in the whisky making process on its premises.  Springbank grows and malts its own barley and does its own bottling.  It’s also one of a very few family owned distilleries and very little whisky produced at Springbank finds its way into blended whiskies.

Bill stands outside the distillery, shivering.  It was cold the day of our visit!

I have genuinely liked most of the Springbank whiskies I’ve managed to try.  But I also think the distillery is one of the more interesting ones we’ve encountered.  With help from the assistant manager of the distillery, Cameron, we were shown what makes Springbank such a unique distillery.  I especially enjoyed Cameron’s accent, which was very thick and charming.  Like the two guides before him, he displayed a keen wit as he described all the steps of whisky making.

Malting barley.
 

A pile of peat.

The kiln where peat is fired.

 It was interesting to see the Springbank Distillery again because this time, they had barley malting on the floor.  The first time we visited, we had to imagine that step of the process of whisky making.  Cameron explained how labor intensive it is to malt barley.  He showed us the primitive tool used to turn the barley so it’s properly prepared for whisky making.  He also showed us the very impressive and OLD equipment used at Springbank.  Most of their machinery is still working great after many decades of use.  I think Springbank is one of the more charming distilleries I’ve been to, as well.

Cameron explains the kiln.

 

An old fashioned record keeping system…  Don’t look now, but I think that’s our captain standing to the left of the pole.

 

These photos are from 2012.  On that trip, we were allowed to visit the room where the casks are stored.  We didn’t see it on our most recent trip, but I’m including the photo for interested parties.

After the tour, we walked to the whisky shop, which is off site.  We all tried some Springbank and took home a small sample bottle given to tour participants.  Then we went shopping.  Bill bought a 24 year old cask end that was slightly discounted.  He poured himself a dram last night and pronounced it good.

On our first visit to this particular whisky shop, there was a very old bottle of scotch being offered for 50,000 GBP.  I took a photo of the bottle.  It has since been sold to someone in China.  Go figure!

The 50,000 GBP whisky… It’s gone now!  A “sold” sign now sits in its place.

The very cool front step of the whisky shop.

I took a photo of this cool van as we were walking back to the ship.

I came back with an unusual souvenir from the Springbank Distillery.  I ended up needing to use the ladies room while I was there, but they happened to have just painted it.  Though I was warned about the wet paint, I still managed to get some on my jacket!

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Hebridean Island Cruises

Part 6… Magnificent Sanda Island and a cold seafood buffet!

These two shots were taken in 2012.  I am including them in this post because they are pretty and I didn’t have a travel blog back then…  Sadly, the Scottish flag is now gone.  

I was really excited to get to visit Sanda Island on our cruise.  In 2012, Bill and I paid our first visit to this tiny, uninhabited island not far from the Northern Irish coast.  I remember not being that excited about it that first time because it was really cold outside and I didn’t feel like walking around.  I was so glad Bill convinced me to get off the ship, since we were treated to an up close and personal visit with several seals.  Plus, Sanda Island is just plain beautiful.  We weren’t sure if we’d be able to get to the island, since sea conditions are not always cooperative.  Fortunately, we were able to see Sanda Island again on our most recent trip.

Sanda Island’s lighthouse from the top of a hill…

Sanda Island was recently sold, so there have been a few changes to the island.  First off, there used to be a Scottish flag on the island.  I noticed that it’s not there anymore.  Also, there was a pile of discarded appliances that were supposed to be picked up by a vessel that had delivered a herd of deer to the island.  Unfortunately, the appliances were left there.  On the plus side, I did manage to spot the herd of deer as Bill and I hiked across the boggy island.  I was really glad I’d brought my rubber LL Bean boots with me.

A natural bridge…

A seal was playing hide and seek with us…

Sanda Island is home to no one but sheep, deer, seals, birds, and whatever swims in the surrounding waters.  I was very enchanted by our first encounter with seals in 2012 and hoped to see more on our most recent trip.  I was not disappointed.  I spotted the first seal when we reached the lighthouse, which is notable for its beauty as well as the adjacent natural bridge next to it.  Four more seals appeared in another area nearby.  They seemed to be as curious about us as we were about them, though they were terrible teases!  They’d pop their heads out of the water, then do something interesting just as I put the camera down.  I got a huge kick out of watching them.

Seals on the beach…

 

As we headed back to the ship, I looked over a cliffside and saw even more seals.  They were lounging on the beach.  I zoomed in as much as I could with my digital camera.  As soon as I’m finished writing up this trip, I will make a video with the footage I shot of the seals.  They really were fun to watch, especially since they were in their natural habitat.

No dogs allowed…  🙁

 

I never saw a bull.  Wonder if this sign was bullshit?

At the end of our walk, there was a most welcome sight…  The ship’s purser, Bobbie, had set up a table with cookies, coffee, tea, and whisky.  Iain, the very handsome hotel manager from Islay who now lives in Mexico when he’s not working, handed me a cup of hot coffee spiked liberally with Bailey’s Irish Cream.  It was so good after hiking in the cold, damp weather!  Bill and I stood around chatting with a couple of other passengers about recent baby naming trends!  Then we donned life vests, got in the tender, and went back to the Princess.  On that particular day, the captain had allowed the ship’s speedboat to be used as a tender.  I didn’t try it myself…  Maybe if it had been warmer outside?

Taken in 2012, I saw them break out the picnic basket again for us in 2016…

On our first visit to Sanda Island, there was to be a hotel that appeared to be open seasonally.  The building is still there, but I don’t think it operates anymore.  I have a feeling the abandoned appliances next to the refreshment canopy came from the abandoned lodging.

Another shot from 2012.  I think this sign has since been taken down.

Welcome refreshments…

Now, for this next bit, I have to confess I’m a little mixed up.  I’m not sure what we had for lunch on Friday.  It could have been fish and chips or it could have been the cold seafood buffet (based on my photos, I’m thinking we actually had the buffet on St. Patrick’s Day).  I’m going to write about the seafood buffet, though it could be that we had it the day prior to our Sanda visit.  It was one of the highlights for me.

A close up of the fresh salmon booty…

Very fresh salmon, smoked salmon, cous cous, salad, smoked trout, and a little prosciutto…  We enjoyed this with a bottomless glass of wine.

Eton mess!  This has become a favorite dessert of mine.

I love fresh fish.  There was an abundance of fresh fish on Hebridean Princess.  In fact, there was so much fresh fish that I actually got a little sick of eating fish!  But the one meal that stands out to me was the day we had the cold seafood buffet.  We ordered starters, which consisted of soup or salad, then lined up for fresh salmon, smoked salmon, smoked trout, shrimp and crab legs.  There were also salads and breads.  For me, it was such a treat to have fresh salmon for lunch, especially since it was very beautifully presented.  Having done three cruises on Hebridean Princess, I can say that each time they’ve served the cold seafood buffet, the salmon has been presented differently, but still beautifully. This time, the two huge fish were decorated with either beets or cucumbers.  I was amazed by the artistry of the chef and his staff!

A side view of the salmon…

 

This was the fresh salmon on one of our first cruises.

I probably took this in Rothesay or Campbeltown…

These photos were taken in November 2012.  There were several baby seal pups on Sanda Island when we visited the first time.  I didn’t see any babies on this latest visit, but wanted to include these photos for those who want to see a baby seal up close!  

Sheep!

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Part 5… Arran distillery and majestic deer…

Some of the first casks at Arran Distillery…

I have a confession to make.  My memories of our cruise are a little jumbled now.  It could be because we drank a lot of alcohol on this cruise.  It could be because I’m getting old.  It could be because a lot has happened in the last two weeks!  Anyway, as I was writing the previous post, I realized I was getting some events mixed up.  I may be going back to do more editing as I write these posts, though I suspect no one cares but me and anyone else who happened to be on the cruise.

A shot of the Princess as we left the tender…

The second distillery we visited on our cruise was the Isle of Arran Distillery, located in the tiny, picturesque village of Lochranza.  We were blessed with sunny skies and calm waters as we each took the tender to the tiny pier.  A bus was waiting to take some of us to the distillery and others on a tour around the Isle of Arran.  Arran is a very beautiful place… so beautiful that we named one of our dogs after it!  Anyway, we decided to go to the distillery instead of sitting on the bus, though I have to admit the bus driver cracked me up as he apologized for the bus he was forced to drive.  It was a city transport type of vehicle, without the plush seats and toilets we’d had on our other buses.  He said he was “shocked” at the quality of the bus.  Little did he know, we’d encounter a much worse bus in Islay a couple of days later!

Bill and I visited the Arran Distillery on our first Hebridean cruise and have become fans of their product.  We also really enjoyed our first tour, which was given by an older Scot with a thick accent named Campbell.  This time, our guide was a bearded man named Stewart.  Like Campbell, he wore a kilt as he led us through the distillery and told us about how whisky is made at the Arran Distillery.  We watched a corporate video, newly produced since our first visit.  Arran Distillery has only been around for about twenty years.  It was founded by Harold Currie,  who happened to die on March 15th of this year.  Since he had just died a couple of days before our visit, flags at the distillery were at half mast.

Lochranza is the home to golden eagles.  It’s said they made an appearance when Queen Elizabeth II visited the distillery.

I don’t have much to say about the distillery tour itself, except that Stewart was very entertaining.  I got a kick out of his beard, which looked like it could have served as home to baby animals.  Arran makes a number of delightful whiskies, but they also make Arran Gold, which is a creme liqueur somewhat like Bailey’s Irish Cream.  I have been known to enjoy Arran Gold on occasion and, in fact, I think I like it a bit more than Bailey’s.

Since we had such beautiful weather on the day of our tour, Bill and I decided to walk back to the ship.  I took a few photos of the nature in Lochranza, as well as a family of deer who were enjoying themselves near the beach.

No doubt a source of the water that makes Arran whisky…

Handsome buck watching his does and posing for photos!

Just across from the pier… we heard and saw lots of local kids playing outside, uninhibited by adult supervision!

You really had to watch where you stepped in Lochranza.  Lots of deer scat everywhere.  😉

 

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Part 4… Invited to church, friendly locals, and fancy Victorian bathrooms!

Bill needs coffee…

As I mentioned in my previous posts, Bill and I had already been to a few of the ports on our most recent Scottish cruise.  One place we visited on our first Hebridean cruise is Rothesay, a very quaint town on the Isle of Bute.  There are a number of places to see on Bute, but we had already been to the ones offered on our most recent cruise.  I really enjoyed seeing Mount Stuart House on our first trip, but didn’t feel like sitting on a bus and taking another tour.  When Bill and I travel, we love to walk around and soak up the atmosphere.  So on the second morning of our cruise, we took a walk along a path that runs along the waterfront in Rothesay.

A view of Rothesay’s marina.

As we were walking, a very fit looking older lady was approaching us on a bike.  She had super short grey hair and a big smile on her face.  When I see anything on wheels approaching me, I do my best to get out of the way, so Bill and I stepped behind a park bench so she could pass us with ease.  Instead, she stopped her bike, offered us a big friendly grin and said, “You must not be locals.  No one from ’round here ever gets out of the way like that for me!”

Well fed seagull…

Cool old car.

We had a hearty laugh as we admitted this wasn’t our town.  She welcomed us and said she hoped we’d have a good time.  I was still smiling as we turned back and watched a swan paddling around in the water eating detritus.  We walked past the Rothesay castle ruins and a neat little mini “wildlife preserve” someone had set up for local birds.  They had taken the time to paint wooden replicas of typical birds who liked to eat there.  Unfortunately, no one had taken the time to clean up the rubbish unceremoniously dumped in the enclosure.  It was still fun to watch the birds.

Hungry swan…

A little bird reserve…

I stopped at a cute little Episcopalian church on the main drag and took a couple of photos.  I had noticed it on our first trip to Rothesay in 2012 and thought it was such a pretty place.  A friendly voice behind me said, “Come in! We’re open!”

This photo was taken in 2012.  For economy’s sake, I didn’t take a new one this time…

2016 shot of the door, which was opened wide for us!

I love how the inscription says the person “fell asleep”…

Bill and I hesitated for a second, then went into the church, which was as adorable on the inside as it was on the outside.  It so happened the rector, a tall smiling man named Andrew, was there to lead a discussion on sin.  He came over, introduced himself to us, and chatted with Bill and me for a few minutes.  It turned out Andrew had also served in the military and he and Bill traded a few anecdotes as I read the inscriptions on the wall about those who “went to sleep” (died).  Andrew joked that a lot of people fall asleep during his sermons.

Bill and I aren’t really church people.  I grew up going to a Presbyterian church and probably wouldn’t mind going back.  Bill has tried several churches in his lifetime.  He’s been Methodist, Episcopalian, Catholic, and even Mormon.  He knows a lot about the Bible and is very spiritual, but isn’t a fan of organized religion.  Bill’s experiences with Mormonism were bad enough that he decided he doesn’t enjoy church.  So we don’t go…  However, I must admit that it was a real pleasure to meet Andrew and the charming folks who had invited us in to see the inside of their house of worship.  They were genuinely welcoming and kind and, I think that if we lived in Rothesay, I wouldn’t have minded attending services.  It was a pleasure to be invited in with a genuine spirit of friendship.  In fact, I noticed all over our travels in Scotland how kind and welcoming people are there.

We went back to the ship, passing Rothesay’s famous men’s Victorian toilets on the way.  We saw the toilets on our first cruise and they are indeed very beautiful.  I took so many pictures of them during our first trip that I didn’t feel the need to see them again.  However, it would be wrong not to mention them in this post about Rothesay for readers who might find themselves there.  It costs 30 pence to enter, whether you’re there to pee or gawk at the Victorian styled men’s room (I guess the ladies room didn’t rate).  Hebridean actually paid for everyone to see the restrooms the first time we were in town and probably did this time, too.  The photos of the men’s room in this post are from 2012.

We went back to the ship and enjoyed the first of many gin and tonics.  Hebridean stocks a lot of gins, a couple of which we’d never tried before.

A gin and tonic made with Hendrick’s gin.  We are familiar with Hendrick’s, but this is the first time we had it with cucumbers.  Hendrick’s has an essence of cucumbers in it, which makes them go particularly well as a garnish.

This is the wood stove in the Tiree Lounge.  I love the seal… we saw a few of those too, on this trip!

Hearty tomato soup for me…

A Greek inspired salad for Bill.

Bill had the crumble for dessert.  I love them.  They take me back to childhood!

The front of Rothesay Castle.   It was closed when we visited the town this time, but we toured it last time we cruised Hebridean and it’s definitely worth seeing, if only for the very cool “prison pit” you can climb down in and explore.

Rothesay is a very welcoming town!

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Part 3… Other passengers and our very first distillery, Glengoyne

After a delicious dinner in the Columba Restaurant, Bill and I started mingling with some of the other passengers.  The vast majority of our fellow cruisers were older couples who hailed from England.  There were a couple of Scots in the mix, and a German couple, as well as two other Americans who came from Tallahassee, Florida.  This cruise line doesn’t tend to attract a lot of Americans.  So far, on our three Hebridean experiences, Bill and I have met a total of four others coming from the States.

Hebridean cruises seem to attract an older, well-heeled crowd.  You might run into professors, doctors, lawyers, and other people with money on this ship.  In fact, Queen Elizabeth II herself has cruised on Hebridean Princess at least twice.  Ever since she had to get rid of the Britannia, she’s had to look for other ways to travel in style.  I figured if Queen Elizabeth II is a fan of Hebridean Princess, I should be too.

Bill and I definitely don’t have a lot of money, but we also don’t have kids or a house to pay for.  And, as I wrote earlier, we travel in the cheap cabins.

Egon the bartender pours champagne… probably for me.

Most of passengers on Hebridean Princess are polite, if not particularly chummy.  By the end of the week, we had made friends with a couple with London who were seated near us in the restaurant.  And most everyone, by the end of the week, was very cordial if not downright friendly.  The staff, on the other hand, is unfailingly warm and polite and very service oriented.  They can’t do enough for you.  I will definitely write more about that as I blog more about this trip.

The whisky expert, Charles Maclean, was also aboard.  Mr. Maclean has written many books about whisky and could lecture endlessly about it.  I must confess, my interests in whisky aren’t really academic.  I just like to drink.  Bill is more of a scotch drinker than I am, though I am known to enjoy a wee dram or two when the mood strikes.

This was on our credenza all week…

On our first Hebridean cruise, Bill and I visited the Arran and Springbank distilleries, two of the distilleries that were on our itinerary.  They were new whiskies to us in 2012, but we have since become fans.  I particularly enjoy Sprinkbank whiskies and order them from masterofmalt.com fairly frequently.  One can certainly find good scotch in Germany, but I like to shop online and try some of the more obscure stuff out there.  But, like I said, I’m not a scotch expert even after having taken this cruise.  I just know more now than I did a couple of weeks ago.

Glengoyne Distillery.  We were told the distillery is in the Highlands, while just across the street where our bus was parked was considered the Lowlands…

Our first port of call was Helensburgh.  During the morning, passengers had a choice of visiting Glengoyne Distillery or the Hill House.  Our guide happens to live in Helensburgh, so he pointed out his home, along with all the other items of interest.  It was a long ride to the Glengoyne Distillery, but it was well worth the trip.  Glengoyne offered visitors something that was not offered at any of the other distilleries we visited all week.  After showing us around the distillery, we were taken to a room where we allowed to make our own blend of scotch!

I happened to be in the group led by a jaunty chap named Ally, who spoke with a thick Scottish brogue and wore tartan pants.  He had a quick wit and a ready smile and I enjoyed listening to him explain whisky as he cracked jokes.

But this was super cool…

We mixed whiskies, tasting the individual ones as we added them to a beaker and in our very own bottle…

The beautiful surroundings…

I loved this display, which showed the many shades of whisky as it ages…  This was also where I was reminded of the “Angel’s share”, which is the scotch that evaporates during aging.  You can always tell a distillery by the black trees outside…

And a cool display of the woods used in the casks…

Storage.

Everyone was enjoying this, but I made everyone laugh when I admitted I was too drunk to write down all my notes.

Bill had a blast.

I’m not sure they do this for everyone who tours the facility, but it sure made our trip very memorable… or as memorable as possible after I tasted all that whisky!  

Ta da!

And it was put in a nice little box for me!
 

After I purchased a whisky themed cookbook in the gift shop, we got back on the bus and made our way back to the ship.  The second evening of the cruise was to be our first gala dinner.  Bill donned his dress blues and I put on a pretty dress…

This uniform was very intriguing to many of our fellow passengers…

And it always makes me proud to see Bill wearing it!
 

Yes, the bottom button was undone for this meal…

 

Turn down for the night!

 
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Part 2… Arrival in Glasgow and meeting up with the Princess!

Bill and I flew out of Stuttgart at about noon on March 14th.  We dropped off our dogs, Zane and Arran, with Max at Dog On Holiday, and had pleasant flights from Stuttgart to Amsterdam to Glasgow.  I was feeling hopeful when I saw the sun out in Glasgow.  On our first trip to Scotland, we were greeted by dismal weather.  It was dark and stormy that November day.  This time, we had almost balmy temperatures and the sun was shining.  I had needed a heavy coat in Stuttgart, but could walk around with no jacket on in Glasgow.

I cracked a smile when I saw the guy directing the taxi stand.  He was wearing a pair of tartan trousers.  I am a sucker for tartans, even though I have yet to invest in a stole of my own.  I would love to see Bill in a kilt, especially if he wears it properly… but he’s mostly Irish, so he balks at the idea of having one made.  One of these days, I’ll get him to pull the trigger.  Hopefully, it won’t be aimed at my head.

We reached the Carlton George Hotel by mid afternoon, deposited our bags, and enjoyed some of the free booze in the mini bar.  Through OpenTable, I had made us reservations at a restaurant called Alston Bar & Beef.  Bill and I both enjoy steaks and this particular restaurant also specializes in gins.  I thought maybe we’d have a couple of gin cocktails, but Bill decided he preferred wine.  We enjoyed a lovely dinner there, with a round of cocktails and a bottle of wine.  We also had dessert… the first of many over the following week.

Bill was fretting a bit because he’d been dieting to get into his dress blues.  Our cruise had two gala nights that involved formal wear.  Bill retired in 2014, so PT tests are now a thing of the past.  He had put on a little weight, but was able to squeeze into the uniform.  I could tell he was working hard not to eat too much steak on our first night in Scotland.

I won’t say too much about the Carlton George in this particular post because I intend to write a review.  For now, I will say we enjoyed a very comfortable evening there.  The hotel is located very close to the main shopping drag in Glasgow and is near Glasgow Central Train Station.  We were due to meet representatives from the ship and our fellow passengers at 3:15pm on March 15th.

Breakfast was not included in our rate, so we decided to eat out on the town.  Again, through OpenTable, I found a very cool bar close to the hotel called the 158 Cafe Bar at Hutcheson’s.  I made us reservations for 9:00am and we both enjoyed a lovely breakfast on our first morning in Scotland.  It would be the first of many sumptuous meals we enjoyed this week.

A yummy mocha…
 
Eggs Benedict…
Scrambled eggs with smoked salmon…

Once checkout time came around, we hauled our bags to the train station and sat in a bar, where we had a light lunch and enjoyed lots of beer.  It so happened the bar we were enjoying was slated to close that Sunday.  Consequently, they didn’t have a very good selection of suds.  I didn’t mind too much, though, because the location was perfect for watching the train station.  It wasn’t long before we saw the folks from the Hebridean show up, ready to welcome a new round of passengers onboard.

An excellent vantage point for spotting people from the ship.

Hebridean Princess hires guides for its cruises.  They usually change each week and have special interests in the different cruise themes.  The week we were on the ship, our guide was John Harbour.  He was very easy to spot.  Every day, he wore a kilt with a matching tie and v neck sweater.  He’s very tall and distinguished and a proud Scotsman.  When we showed up with our passel of bags, he commented that we hadn’t packed light.  I explained that Bill had brought his uniform.  Then John told us that he had served in the Royal Navy for over thirty years.  He now has his own tour guide business and has been on Princess five times.  Prior to our whisky trip, John had been visiting India.  I knew he and Bill would have plenty to talk about during our trip.

When all of the passengers who were planning to be collected at the train station had arrived, John and the bartender, Egon from the Czech Republic, loaded us into the bus and we headed to the airport to pick up more people.  Thanks to all the beer I drank at the bar in the train station, I had a strong urge to answer the call of nature.  Fortunately, the bus had a toilet.  It also had seatbelts, with John incessantly reminded us to use every time we got on the bus!

We arrived at the Greenock pier by about five o’clock.  After a quick security check, we were each piped aboard the Hebridean Princess.  A young kilted lad stood outside the terminal with his pipes and played for everyone as they made their way to the ship.  I managed to get a very quick film of him playing.

The woman who ended up being our waitress showed us to Loch Crinan, our stateroom on the Hebridean deck.  The Hebridean deck is where the cheapest rooms are.  They have no windows and only a shower.  However, despite being the least expensive of the rooms on Hebridean Princess, they are still very comfortable.  A small bottle of whisky sat on the credenza over a stocked minibar that included water, soda, and fruit juice.  The bathroom was outfitted with Molton Brown toiletries and very thick, luxurious towels on a towel warmer.

The bed in Loch Crinan.
 
The bathroom.

We were asked to unpack our bags and set them outside so they could be stowed.  Then, we were welcome to make our way to the Tiree Lounge for welcome drinks and the muster drill.  The first night, dinner dress would be casual and we would learn about the many distilleries we would be visiting during our week on the Princess.  By the end of the week, we would know how whisky is made and the differences between the different whisky making regions around Scotland.

The very friendly and warm staff, mostly made up of Scots and folks from Latvia and Lithuania, made sure to make us feel at home.  After I made the steep climb back up to the Tiree Lounge, Egon the bartender handed me the first of many glasses of champagne.

Bill suits up for the safety drill.
Just as the sun was beginning to set…
 
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Part 1… What the hell am I doing in Scotland again?

Beautiful sunset on the first night of our cruise.  We were near Greenock.

In November 2012, Bill and I celebrated our tenth wedding anniversary in Scotland.  We did two five night cruises on Hebridean Princess, a former car ferry turned tiny luxury cruise ship.  That ten night cruise was mostly marvelous!  We were bowled over by Scotland’s charm and beauty and the fantastic personal service we received on Hebridean Princess.

On that first trip, I felt a real kinship with Scotland, which is where a lot of my forebears hailed from before they ended up in the Rockbridge County area of Virginia in the 1700s.  Not all of my people were Scottish, but as I’ve been studying my origins, I’ve found out that it was once home for quite a few of my ancestors.  I can only guess why so many of them ended up in Virginia when they did.  One thing I have noticed, though, is that Rockbridge County looks a lot like Scotland, only with less water and lower mountains.

Of course, I have also discovered roots in Germany.  In fact, it turns out I have more German ancestry than I initially realized.  Some enterprising members of my extended family have done genealogy work and left it available for slackers like me and I have found ties to places like Rhineland and Hessen… and even Karlsruhe!  Germany also has a special place in my heart, but I live there now, see it most every day, and was badly in need of a change of scenery.

Also, we had a bit of a tragedy on that first Hebridean cruise that kind of ruined the last day for us.  Our sweet old bagel (beagle/basset hound mix) MacGregor became very ill while we were away and while we were on the Princess, we got the devastating news that he needed to be euthanized.  Fortunately, we were able to get back to North Carolina to see MacGregor and get him properly diagnosed.  We ended up taking him to NC State, where he had an MRI.  Sadly, he had a highly malignant tumor invading his spinal column that we hadn’t known about.  Nothing could be done for MacGregor; so we said goodbye to him December 18, 2012.  A month later, inspired by the beauty and splendor of Scotland, we named our next rescue dog Arran, after one of our favorite Scottish islands discovered on that first trip.

For three years, I pined to go back to Scotland and try another Hebridean cruise.  The ship carries only 49 passengers.  The food and service are impeccable.  It’s truly all inclusive and very, very Scottish.  Last year, I steered my mom to a cruise on Royal Crown, the ship Hebridean leases every summer for its European river cruises.  Mom spent two weeks on Royal Crown and had a fantastic time.  When she visited us in July 2015, her stories about her cruise reminded me that it was high time we took another voyage.  I saw a prime opportunity when we got notified of a special offer for the brand new “Spirit of Scotland” tour offered from March 15-22.  This would be a cruise focused on touring whisky distilleries.  A whisky expert would be onboard.  And if we booked early, we’d even get a discount.  I made a proposal to Bill, who had a ball on our first cruise.  The prospect of drinking whiskies all week was a great incentive for him to say yes to the boat.

One thing I did differently for this cruise was booking directly with the main office in England.  I sent an email to Johnathan Moffat, who I think is in charge of UK sales… Anyway, we quickly got somewhat familiar with each other through emails as I arranged the trip.  Though Hebridean cruises charges a fee for paying with a credit card and only accepts payments in pounds sterling, I think we may have paid less by booking through the UK instead of through the North American sales office.  Also, the UK office didn’t charge us for taking the coach to the Greenock cruise terminal.  On our first cruise, booked through a broker in the United States, we paid $80 for Bill and me to ride the bus… This time, it was included in the price of the cruise.  That’s something to keep in mind if this blog encourages anyone to book a cruise on Hebridean Princess.

So, once we had decided to go, I started making plans for our trip.  I knew we’d need at least one night in Glasgow.  Sure, we could have arranged for the coach to pick us up at the airport in Glasgow, but I knew I liked Glasgow and wanted to see it again.  I also wanted to see Avenue Q, a very irreverent musical currently touring the United Kingdom.  Originally, I had planned our trip to start in Belfast, since Avenue Q was showing there the weekend before our cruise was to start.  But we discovered Max, our dog sitter, was not going to be available at that time.  The earliest we could get to Glasgow was Monday, March 14th.  That would give us one night in Glasgow.  Although I like to try out new hotels, I decided to book us a room at the Carlton George, which is where we stayed the first time we visited Glasgow in 2012.

I have become a big fan of Carlton hotels.  So far, Bill and I have stayed in three of them and they have all been very comfortable and convenient.  Two of the three, Carlton George and Carlton Square (in Haarlem, The Netherlands), even offer free minibars.  That means free booze!  The first time we stayed at Carlton George, I went cheap and booked a basic room.  This time, I booked an executive room, which gave us access to the very nice executive lounge on the seventh floor.

Realizing that our cruise started and ended on a Tuesday, Bill decided to take off work the rest of the following week.  He’s worked very hard in Germany since August 2014, so his boss was very agreeable to the idea of him burning up some leave.  The plan to take the rest of the week off worked out perfectly, since Avenue Q was going to be playing in Stoke on Trent the week following our cruise.  It was on the way to Mildenhall Air Force Base, which is another place I’ve been dying to see for many years.  My father’s last assignment was at Mildenhall and it’s where most of my very first memories were formed.  I wanted to go back there and see it again.  Our initial plan was to spend one night in Glasgow, the week on Hebridean Princess, two nights in Stoke, and three nights in Mildenhall.

Next, I booked our flights.  I chose KLM because it offered the best connections and most reasonable prices.  Our inbound flight came into Glasgow, but I wasn’t sure which airport we should use for leaving the United Kingdom.  I originally toyed with trying to use Stanstead Airport, but the flights I found that worked for us were obscenely expensive.  I dreaded the idea of using a London airport, since I knew Bill would be driving and probably freaking out over that.  Then I discovered the lovely Norwich Airport, located not so far from Mildenhall.  Then I realized that our flight would be early on Easter morning, so instead of staying near the Air Force base, I chose lodging in Watton, which is on the road to the Norwich Airport.  That turned out to be a very good decision.  We had a wonderful drive to the airport this morning.  Seriously… if you’re headed to Mildenhall or Norfolk in the UK, you should consider using the Norwich International Airport.

Once the trip was planned, Bill started working out so he could get back into his dress blues.  We remembered from our first cruise that folks on Hebridean Princess get a huge kick out of US military uniforms!  Speaking of which, I know I have a lot of military readers and many of them have kids.  I want to state upfront that Hebridean Princess is pretty much an adults only cruise.  Kids under age nine are not allowed and, to be very honest, I highly doubt most youngsters would enjoy the cruise.  At age 43, I was among the youngest of the passengers, if you get my drift.  However, it is a fabulous cruise for couples, especially those middle aged and older.  It’s also a great cruise for single travelers and elderly folks, as long as they are active and able bodied.  The ship does not have any elevators and many of the excursions involve walking.

Another thing I want to mention is that the fares for Hebridean Princess are pretty steep.  However, Bill and I have now done three cruises on the Princess and have yet to have a bill to pay at the end of the trip.  When they say it’s all-inclusive, they really mean it.  You pay your fare and literally don’t have to pay another dime when you’re on the ship.   Only a few things are not included in the fare and they generally involve library wines or items from the gift shop.  So yeah, once you’ve paid, you really are a guest in every sense of the word.

A beautiful sunset over Oban… taken on the last night of the Spirit of Scotland cruise.
 
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anecdotes, Military

On being a young American kid in Europe…

My very first passport photo before we moved to England.  I was about three years old and two feet ten inches tall.   I was born in Hampton, Virginia and my parents moved us back to that area when I was eight.  I grew up in Virginia and it’s now “home”, but I don’t miss it that much. 

As I was watching the dogs outside this morning, I had a sudden thought about being an American kid in Europe.  I spent part of my early childhood in England at Mildenhall Air Force Base.  We lived on the base, but I went to a British school instead of the American school.  My sisters went to the American schools.  At the time, living in England was perfectly normal to me.

I didn’t know I was in a foreign country, although I do remember my mom and sisters explaining to me that we were Americans living in England and that it was a “different country” than where we came from.  At that time, I didn’t have a concept of countries, though.  England was simply “home”.  I still have vivid memories of the primary school where I attended kindergarten with British and a few other American kids.  My mom told me she sent me there because the school day was longer and it kept me out of her hair.

Our backyard in England on Mildenhall Air Force Base bordered a big field with cows in it.  I was fascinated by them.  To this day, I still hate wearing shoes… and I love livestock.

We moved back to the States in 1978, when I was six years old.  At that point, I had spent half my life in England and it was really the only place I remembered.  I have only the vaguest of memories of our time at Wright Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio.

Even though I’m American and was finally back in the United States after three years abroad, it didn’t really feel like my home.  It felt like a foreign country.  The time I spent as a small child in England changed me somehow, even though I am very much an American.  I guess living in England made me more aware of the world around me.  It definitely gave me a perspective that a lot of my peers didn’t have, although quite a lot of my peers were also military brats and a few of them had also lived abroad.

 

Me and my mom going to high tea at the Swan Hotel in Lavenham, England.  This photo was so fascinating to me that I used Google Earth to figure out where we were.  This hotel is still open and there’s a chance Bill and I might book a room there in March.  It depends on how nervous he is about getting us to the airport on Easter morning.

For some reason, I was thinking about kids who are born abroad and spend their formative years in another country.  They go to school with host country nationals, probably learn to speak the local language.  It’s “home” to them.  Then they move back to the country where they’re really from and it somehow feels “foreign” to them.  Even though they are among their people, they are different.  They were different when they were abroad, too.  They weren’t locals and weren’t likely to stay there longer than a few years, but they were mingling among the locals and got to see things through their eyes.

I think sometimes the first place you remember as a child is a place that really leaves an imprint.  I have always been kind of fascinated by England, though I haven’t spent a lot of time there since we moved back to the States in 1978.  We went to London in 2009 and I remember being questioned by the customs people.  They wanted to know if I’d ever been there before.  I told them I used to live in England.  That piqued their interest, until I told them I lived there as a young child in the 1970s.  Then it was okay.  I suspect there are a lot of Americans like me, people who lived abroad when they were kids and kind of feel like their childhood home is actually “home”.  I think my mom thought of England as home, too.  She said she cried all the way back to the States when we had to move.

My parents kept in touch with my dad’s British secretary from when we lived in England.  Before my dad died in 2014, they went back to visit her a few times.  She visited them, too, and even became friends with my Granny.  In fact, I saw her right before Bill and I got married.  I remember her fondly.  Before we left England, she asked me when I’d be back to visit.  I told her I wasn’t coming back until they built a bridge across the Atlantic Ocean.  She reminded me of that when I saw her last.  I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve flown across the Atlantic Ocean since 1978… or really, 1995.  I never took another trip abroad until I joined the Peace Corps.

My sisters cautioned me against marrying a military guy.  They saw my mom’s life as an Air Force wife and how it didn’t make her very happy.  I mostly enjoyed being an Army wife until Bill retired in 2014.  The lifestyle took me in a direction I wasn’t expecting, but I’ve been around the military my whole life.  It’s kind of second nature to me.  I didn’t have the globe trotting experience my sisters had because my dad retired from the Air Force when I was six years old.  But I definitely made up for that as an Army wife.  I eventually had roots when my dad retired, but now I’m not sure if I’ll root anywhere else.

Hebridean Princess in November 2012.  We’ll be back aboard in March.

In March, Bill and I will be going to Glasgow, Scotland to catch a cruise through the Hebrides.  We have decided that after the cruise, we will visit my old childhood stomping grounds, possibly with a stop in Stoke On Trent so we can catch a performance of Avenue Q.  If we do make it to Suffolk, Bill will probably have to acquaint himself with British driving.  I know it makes him nervous, but I feel confident he can do it.  If my parents could do it, he certainly can.  And who knows?  We may even move to England at some point.  The expat life definitely suits us.

I spotted this sign in Edinburgh.  My maiden name is Tolley.  My married name is Crossen.  Seems like a clue from the past.

I always thought I’d put down roots somewhere and raise a family.  That lifestyle is apparently not in the cards for me.  My expat career started with my being a very little kid in England and mingling among Brits.  Then I went to Armenia as a young woman and worked with others who also later became expats.  Seriously, a lot of my old Peace Corps friends are living abroad.  Now I’m on a second Germany tour.  I have no burning desire to move back to the United States anytime soon.  If I could, I think I’d stay abroad for the rest of my life.  We’ll see what happens.

For now, I’m really looking forward to going back to England and seeing somewhere other than London.  London is amazing; don’t get me wrong.  But it’s not what I remember about the first childhood home I actually remember.  Besides, England, Ireland, Scotland, and even Germany is where my people were from in the first place.

We lived in England when this happened…  

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