It was a chilly, damp morning in Inverness. Our hotel was in a residential area, which was very beautiful.
Our breakfast was included, so we all met at 8:30 in the conservatory. It was a rather meagre buffet with pale scrambled eggs that looked very watery. There were three types of meat - back bacon, pork sausage, beef sausage - nothing is making me look at UK meat products any more favorably! There was also black pudding, hash browns in a square, a few fruits, yogurt, cereal.
Pat took Finn to a golf driving range to hit a bucket of balls. I worked on this blog, but the battery on my computer soon died, and we had no charger.
Pat and Finn were back by 11 AM and we set out to drive back to Liff. Ron and I had looked at the atlas to see if it would be possible to visit Oban or Aberdeen, but everything was too far. I did read that it was worth stopping off at Blair or Pithlochry. So, we exited the motorway toward Blair, and a busy complex called House of Bruar caught our eye. Pat made a U-turn and we drove in. It was a large shopping complex with art gallery, shops selling traditional tweeds, cashmere, merino and other wool products, a gorgeous food hall, restaurant, etc. They are the premier provider of Scottish country clothing in the UK - offering brands such as Barbour, Aigle, and Musto. The sun had come out by then, and it was pleasant (although windy) to walk about.
The best part for us was the fantastic food hall, something like a Scottish mini-Harrods.
There were so many things to look at, all impeccably displayed. A chocolate area, a salmon counter, large liquor rooms, deli with cheeses and meats of all sorts (and samples on offer), a large butcher shop.....
Ron purchased Dalvenie Scotch, 12-year old single-malt (6 years in an oak cask that had held whisky, followed by 6-years in an oak cask that had held sherry). They gave him two small glasses with his purchase. We bought several cheeses, serrano ham, and crackers (still not finding crackers that suit us).
We wandered around so long that I suddenly realized I had to sit, and right away. I told Finn to tell Pat and Ron I would be outside looking for a place to sit. By the time I reached the bench, every joint and muscle was throbbing. It is disheartening to love to walk and wander and have to limit it to such short distances and time. Pat went to the car park, and brought the "Bumble Bee" close to the shops to pick me up.
We then drove to the Atholl Arms near to Blair Castle in Atholl Blair. The castle dates from 1269 and is the ancestral home of the Clan Murray. We haven't found any information on the history of the hotel.
Again, we found that the pub did not allow anyone under the age of 18. It was too windy to eat at the sunny tables outside. We finally asked if kids could sit in the dining area in the room adjacent to the bar, and that was no problem.
I had mac & cheese and Ron had fish & chips, and we shared. The pub menus do get monotonous! Finn had a cheeseburger, and Pat had chicken wings in a whisky and BBQ sauce.
We drove on from there with another short detour off the motorway to drive through the village of Pitlochry, which was buzzing with people. There were numerous B&B' and hotels on every block, some cute restaurants, and a busker in kilts playing the bagpipes in a little square. Sorry we didn't head there for lunch.
We got home about 4 PM. Pat and Finn went for a little walk. Ron had a nap, and I was happy to be able to charge my computer. We had a leisurely evening with nibbles of the new cheeses, Serrano ham, etc. from House of Bruar. It was a nice change of pace.
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| Pat & Finn Sunday morning (main house) |
Our breakfast was included, so we all met at 8:30 in the conservatory. It was a rather meagre buffet with pale scrambled eggs that looked very watery. There were three types of meat - back bacon, pork sausage, beef sausage - nothing is making me look at UK meat products any more favorably! There was also black pudding, hash browns in a square, a few fruits, yogurt, cereal.
Pat took Finn to a golf driving range to hit a bucket of balls. I worked on this blog, but the battery on my computer soon died, and we had no charger.
Pat and Finn were back by 11 AM and we set out to drive back to Liff. Ron and I had looked at the atlas to see if it would be possible to visit Oban or Aberdeen, but everything was too far. I did read that it was worth stopping off at Blair or Pithlochry. So, we exited the motorway toward Blair, and a busy complex called House of Bruar caught our eye. Pat made a U-turn and we drove in. It was a large shopping complex with art gallery, shops selling traditional tweeds, cashmere, merino and other wool products, a gorgeous food hall, restaurant, etc. They are the premier provider of Scottish country clothing in the UK - offering brands such as Barbour, Aigle, and Musto. The sun had come out by then, and it was pleasant (although windy) to walk about.
The best part for us was the fantastic food hall, something like a Scottish mini-Harrods.
There were so many things to look at, all impeccably displayed. A chocolate area, a salmon counter, large liquor rooms, deli with cheeses and meats of all sorts (and samples on offer), a large butcher shop.....
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| A small section of the chocolate department |
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| An entire counter of salmon |
Ron purchased Dalvenie Scotch, 12-year old single-malt (6 years in an oak cask that had held whisky, followed by 6-years in an oak cask that had held sherry). They gave him two small glasses with his purchase. We bought several cheeses, serrano ham, and crackers (still not finding crackers that suit us).
We wandered around so long that I suddenly realized I had to sit, and right away. I told Finn to tell Pat and Ron I would be outside looking for a place to sit. By the time I reached the bench, every joint and muscle was throbbing. It is disheartening to love to walk and wander and have to limit it to such short distances and time. Pat went to the car park, and brought the "Bumble Bee" close to the shops to pick me up.
We then drove to the Atholl Arms near to Blair Castle in Atholl Blair. The castle dates from 1269 and is the ancestral home of the Clan Murray. We haven't found any information on the history of the hotel.
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| Pat, Ron, Mary |
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| Finn |
I had mac & cheese and Ron had fish & chips, and we shared. The pub menus do get monotonous! Finn had a cheeseburger, and Pat had chicken wings in a whisky and BBQ sauce.
We drove on from there with another short detour off the motorway to drive through the village of Pitlochry, which was buzzing with people. There were numerous B&B' and hotels on every block, some cute restaurants, and a busker in kilts playing the bagpipes in a little square. Sorry we didn't head there for lunch.
We got home about 4 PM. Pat and Finn went for a little walk. Ron had a nap, and I was happy to be able to charge my computer. We had a leisurely evening with nibbles of the new cheeses, Serrano ham, etc. from House of Bruar. It was a nice change of pace.
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