I took my first personally-planned visit out of the city this weekend to Glencoe, also known as the location of many of the scenes from Skyfall, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Monty Python and the Holy Grail and Braveheart, as well as the sight of the seventeenth century Glencoe Massacre of the MacDonald clan. Needless to say, it’s a very historical and scenic area. The trip was a last minute decision by my flatmate and me so we didn’t plan much beforehand beyond the bus tickets to get there. As a result, we ran into a few surprises once we got there. Since neither of us had been to the area before, or any part of the Highlands for that matter, we didn’t really know what to expect once we got there and after a four hour bus ride when we finally did arrive, what we found was not quite what we had imagined.
First off, we hadn’t expected such a pleasant drive. Unlike the US, in Britain, experiences with the bus systems are generally quite reliable and enjoyable. Word of advice, taking the bus or the train is probably one of the best ways to actually see Scotland and the rest of the UK, and it’s usually both the cheapest and easiest modes of transport. Bus drivers are generally incredibly friendly and really helpful, especially when you’re lost and not sure which line to connect to. That being said, you do have to be a bit more aggressive when catching the buses. On our way back to Edinburgh, we literally had to stand on the side of the road and flag down a bus speeding by. No, we weren’t lost, nor were we being obnoxious tourists. It just so happens that the bus stops (and apparently this is quite standard in a lot of areas) are an unmarked patch of grass on the side of the road that work by request only. Of course in order to “request” a speeding bus to stop, you have to jump up and down and wave incessantly like a crazy person for a few minutes while it drives along the bend, which is exactly what we did, much to the amusement of the park ranger who was also passing by at the time. Yet despite having to act like a nutter on the side of an almost empty country road, we were able to make it to and from without so much as a hiccup.
Anyways, despite our luck with a smooth journey out of the city, once we finally arrived in Glencoe, we realized that a bit more prior planning would have been a good idea. You see, Scotland is known for its scenery, rural greenery and quaint villages, which in my opinion, couldn’t be more perfect. There are lots of trees and streams and munros (the tallest of Scotland’s mountains, all above 3000 ft), picturesque village streets, and little B&B cafes with homemade soup and fresh bread. The downside: there are a lot of rural little villages without easy transport between them and not all that much to do once you’re there. Don’t get me wrong, Glencoe Village was absolutely beautiful and I could not have asked for a better place to visit, but within about two hours, my flatmate and I had seen the entire village, which consisted of 54 buildings including houses (yes, we counted), three times over and had lunch and coffee at the single village café. (Unfortunately, the Glencoe Folk Museum, which wasn’t much bigger than a one bedroom flat, was closed for renovations, so we lost at least an hour of touristy exploration.)Regardless, there were still six hours until our bus back to Edinburgh and the next closest village was over a three and a half hour long walk away. Luckily for us though, we had planned on spending the rest of the day hiking in the mountains, but it occurred to us that had we not been the outdoorsy types that we are, we would have been very bored for next six hours, seeing as we had no way of getting to anywhere else in the area, and had just about exhausted the sights and activities of the village. As I mentioned, we were fortunate in that this wasn’t an issue, this time at least, and were able to pass by the time climbing three of the nearby munros and exploring the glen.
So moral of this week’s adventures: if you’re traveling to Scottish countryside (which I highly recommend you do!), make sure you’ve checked up on what you’ll be doing ahead of time, and if you aren’t into the great outdoors, make sure you get a multi-trip bus pass for the day so you don’t get stuck in a tiny village staring up at the munros all day. Although, there are certainly worse fates in the world!