We’ve recently enjoyed two glorious weeks in Scotland - a
week in Skye, a couple of days in Comrie near Perth, and the remainder of the
stay near Braemar in the Cairngorms. Some of the hightlights and recommendations will form various
articles to follow.
Our accommodation on Skye was a traditional thatched croft
that was exposed to the elements of The Minch, the channel between Skye and the
Outer Hebridean islands of Harris and Lewis. Small, cosy and compact, the
building evoked the hard life (past and present) of Western Islander crofters –
although ours had running water, electricity and an inside toilet.
In total contrast, Braemar consisted of a apartment in a
former Victorian hunting lodge, the accommodation of wealthy sportspeople for
whom a stay was pleasure and pastime rather than grind. Not that we knew it
when booking it, but the lodge was commissioned by Princess Louise, Princess
Royal and daughter of Edward VII, grand-daughter of Victoria. The lodge was an alternative
highland haunt to nearby Balmoral.
