‘’Hello! Welcome to Scotland,’’ and that was the first greeting that I got when I arrived in Inverness. Unlike any other not so friendly immigration officer, this man who reminds me of Santa Claus just smiled at me, warmly, on my first arrival in the land of the Ness. I was taken aback, but I responded to him with a friendly greeting as well.
‘’Hey, thank you! How are you?’’
‘’I am fine, Miss. How are you?’’
‘’I am fine as well. Just a little bit tired, after the flight.’’
‘’Ooh, I see. But you are here already. Enjoy your holiday in Scotland.’’ And he smiled again and gave me my passport.
I mumbled to myself, ‘’How nice. This is a good start.’’
Just like that, I went searching for Mira, my friend from the college, whom Dave and I planned to spend our holiday with.
Mira was already in Inverness before and we went here because of her recommendation.
We stayed in different places. She chose a hyped hostel in the center, while Dave and I went for Airbnb for more comfort and privacy.
Hiking with Mira, captured by hubby
If one choose Scotland for the summer vacation, my reply would be, ‘’Please lower your expectation.’’
We were there at the end of July, which was predicted by the weather app to be the warmest month slash time in Scotland. Well, it wasn’t correct. I packed wrongly and had to buy a new pullover. Thanks to the charity shops, I could buy a three pound pullover which still looks good and brought me warmth.
Typical summer weather in Scotland
Inverness is a small, but charming city. I love the fact that the greens are reachable within walking distance. Hamburg is green, but Inverness is even greener.
Fact is because Scotland only makes up 10% of the United Kingdom population with a piece of land, one will not feel crowded when strolling around in the city.
We went to Scotland mainly to enjoy nature and we achieved our goal! Scotland offers untouched nature. And the best part of it is that the locals also enjoy nature. As we hiked, we met older people with their pets. And if you are a fan of the Outlander series, the movie was shot in Scotland as well. Since we were already in Inverness, the source of the legendary Loch Ness, so we went to visit the lake. It is a huge lake and a very calming place to be.
Dave and Mira chilling in Loch Ness
And if you are tempted to hike even more, we went to Abriachan Forest, where we found a hidden vegan cafe, which was homemade by a lovely family. It was a bit pricey maybe for a normal standard, but for 20 pounds you get a teapot tea of your choice, a fluffy generous slice of lemon cake with butter cream, and also a hearty bowl of soup with the crackers. Plus, the income goes directly to these lovely folks, who live their life from gardening and farming there, it was a wise choice.
A table full of love
While we were in Inverness, we were touched by the friendliness and kindness of the people. It is a place that was tempting us to stay there even a little bit longer if we could. But just like every other holiday, it would one day come to an end. And this is certainly no other.
Anyway, if one wants to explore Scotland, renting a car is the best way to do it. Depending on your distance, I would recommend you to rent a normal car instead of an e-Car. We had that and it was quite challenging to plan our journey since one needs to know where to charge the car. And for the term of cost, it wasn’t the cheaper choice anyway. So, one better choose wisely.
@globustrotterin 
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