The final day in Scotland - and what a day it was! Filled from start to finish with seeing all the things, we set out from Stirling and cruised all over the countryside taking in the sights. We started the day in the town of Linlithgow which is where Linlithgow Palace is located and is now run as a tourist sight by the National Trust for Scotland.
Linlithgow Palace is where James IV brought his new wife, Margaret Tudor (the sister of Henry the 8th) - their marriage was meant to unite Scotland and England... and it did, in a way. It was the birthplace of James V and later his daughter Mary, Queen of Scots - but she was whisked away to Stirling Castle shortly after her birth to be crowned queen - since James V died when she was mere days old. This was another castle we weren't able to tour because it's also under renovations due to structural dangers on the inside - it's been around since the 12th century - so it's understandable.
We originally thought we wouldn't be able to get close to the castle but a lovely construction worker told us the gate was unlocked and to come on in! Thank you kind sir! We were able to take pictures and walk the perimeter of the castle before making our way back to the town square to get coffee and then be headed to our next stop - Midhope Castle! This castle was the biggest Outlander filming location on our list of places to see because it stands in as Lallybroch - Jamie Fraser's family home!
Midhope is a tower house and is unfortunately in a rather derelict state. Outlander uses the exterior for filming because the interior of the house is in ruins - which is rather sad to see. The house has been on the land outside Edinburgh since the 15th century and used to belong to the Martin family and then the Drummond family. The castle is operated as part of the Hopetoun Estate and when we arrived for our timed "entry" - we were essentially the only people there - which meant we could be as silly as we wanted. You do have to purchase a timed entry ticket to "tour" the castle - you'll be allowed to explore the grounds and take as many pictures as you'd like during your tour.
We explored the house from one end to the other, taking in the front, back, sides and each little nook and cranny. We crept up onto the steps for pictures and I waded through the weeds to peer through the barred up doors and take in the interior - where it appeared a ceiling beam was lying across the front room and the floor boards are nonexistent. In my reading and research I discovered that an original ceiling mural is kept in Edinburgh by the National Trust for Scotland - that would be neat to see, I'm sure.
My sister and I may or may not (you know we did) have danced in circles around the front gate to the opening credit song from Outlander - you can witness some of my moves above! After a final snap down the driveway over our shoulder, we hopped back into the car and we were on our way again! This time we drove just four miles away to Hopetoun House - a family home that was built at the end of 1699 and is still the home of the Hope Family to this day. That's right y'all - people actually live in this house to this day.
The house is absolutely massive and we only toured a central portion of the house that has been historically preserved... the entire house is an absolute behemoth and all I could think as we toured it was that I couldn't imagine living in a house this large. The Hope family are the Marquess and Marchioness of Linlithgow and they have four children; their eldest son will be inheriting the title of Marquess and will one day be in charge of running the estate. The house is littered with pictures of the children with people like Prince Charles, Camilla and even... Queen Elizabeth herself! *gasp* The family that lives here are 100% posh and it's so very obvious!
You'll probably guess this - but Hopetoun House was used as an Outlander filming location! The grounds and the exterior of the house were used for a duel and even as the streets of 1700's Paris, while the red room inside the house was used as one of the interior sets for the Duke of Sandringham's house. We wandered the grounds ahead of our tour and while the house is incredibly impressive - I have to say this was probably my least favorite building to tour - I just found the level of grandeur to be a little overwhelming...
The next stop on the tour was the town of Carnwath - which is where my Dad's ancestors hail from - and so therefore, it's where my ancestors hail from too! My Dad completed an Ancestry DNA test from Ancestry and his discovery confirmed the ancestry research that he's been doing for several years now - he is almost 70% Scottish (with some English and Irish thrown in for good mix) and before we were in the United States, we were in the Carnwath area of Scotland!
We explored the cemetery in Carnwath but we were unable to enter the small chapel that contains a vault holding the Somerville tombs - but we did find the surname Somerville all over the tombstones, on a map of the town with castle remains marked out and even over the door lintel of one of the houses! It was pretty interesting to see all these things that point to the people who came before you and the life they once led in another land - so very cool.
Our final two stops were along the Forth and Clyde Canal to see The Kelpies and the Falkirk Wheel! The Kelpies are right at 99 feet tall and are an homage to the horse-powered heritage that has existed in Scotland for centuries! Kelpies are believed to be mischievous water spirits that take on the form of a horse - some people think Nessie might actually be a Kelpie (or water horse).
The Kelpies have their very own lock station along the Forth and Clyde Canal and they are named Duke and Baron! They are quite a stunning sight to see and can be seen from the M road (that's like a highway) as you go through Falkirk in between Edinburgh and Stirling! After walking around the park that surrounds the Kelpies, we decided to make a final stop for the day at the Falkirk Wheel - a true engineering marvel!
The Falkirk Wheel is a rotating boat lift that connects the Forth & Clyde Canal with the Union Canal and it's the only wheel of it's kind in the entire world! The wheel rotates boats in a water-filled bay from the canal at the top to the lock basin at the bottom and uses the same amount of energy to move the boats as it takes to boil eight kettles! It's absolutely wild and trips on the wheel take place on the hour, every hour - although we arrived after the Visitor Center had closed. It was still an exciting and unique way to end our time in Scotland, viewing an engineering marvel in all it's glory!
The cat at the AirBnB - shortly before she decided to claw my thumb while we were "playing" - the little stinker! She was awfully pretty though!
Scotland was such a whirlwind but the memories that my family made are ones I'll hold on to forever. It's long been a dream to be able to see Scotland and the country absolutely lived up to everything I imagined in my head - the people were welcoming and kind, the food was tasty (maybe not haggis) and the countryside itself was the most stunning I've seen in my thirty-six years. I hope and pray that one day I can return to the country and see even more of what is has to offer!
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