Pre-christmas in France

Tomorrow, exactly this time, this moment... i will flying across the britain mainland to...... PARIS, Yuhuuuuuuu!

this is my long-waited tour, i'm extremely excited about it. Paris the city that never sleep, Paris the city of glamour, Paris the city of designers and fashion...... This is THE PARIS that i am talking about here. Gosh, writing about it already makes my adrenaline runs wild, imagine when i am really there......imagine when i step on the same solid ground of the birth place of Vincent Van Gogh. Imagine the feelings of being in those incredible and historical buildings such as Louvre, Eiffel tower, Notre dame, Arc de Triomphe, moulin rouge....

One thing for sure, i will enjoy myself to fullest when i am there.

The highland tour 2

The highland trip wouldn’t be perfect without the visit to the lochs. ‘Loch’ is another term for lakes in Scotland. Well, instead of went to the Famous Loch Ness, the lake which the myth of bizarre sea creature took place, we went to another Loch, known as Loch Lamond. The lake is so wide that without viewing from the top of the mountain, you might mistook it as the shore which open to the sea. We took some marvelous pictures on the top of the hill with the loch down below our feet.

We were so absorbed in the stunning scenery and as if it’s not exciting enough, we actually end up……… lost in the wood. There was no ending to the jungle treks and we have no choice but to keep walking the trail until it leads us to some river banks, and eventually to the main road. Luckily Mr Tour Guide did came back and searched for us and he claimed that he will never leave the ladies behind. Gosh, what an exciting incident.

The last stop was the Glengoyne whisky distillery. It is one of the oldest working distilleries in Scotland. First, we attended a short video tour which briefly explained the history of the Glengoyne whisky factory while we were treated with a shot of single highland malt Scotch whisky. It amazed me that this ‘awful’ spirited tasted drink actually made up of just water, barley and yeast. Next, we went around the factory to view their massive fermentation tanks and distillation equipment, although it wasn’t really that interesting but it was indeed informative.

By the way the guy with its back shown to the camera in the picture is none other than our Mr tour guide.

Well, that marked the end of our highland trip, but before we left, we took a nice group picture with the rest of the team members. Although there arent that much of interaction among the group members due to the language barrier (most of them were from Europe countries), but they are certainly very friendly and all of us enjoyed ourselves to the fullest.

The highland tour 1

It was the highland tour that gave us the chance to experience the Scotland’s historical story to the full. On the second day of our trip, we had decided to go for a 1 day highland tour for the price of ++£20 per person. The highland tour covered the famous Stirling castle, Loch Lamond and Glangoyne Scots whisky distillery.

Throughout the highland tour, we were entertained by the tour guide. He is a young Scottish lad, with shoulder-long hair and great humor. We heard the stories about William Wallace immortalized in the film ‘Braveheart’, but the true story behind the freedom fighter was actually related to the legendary Robin Hood. Mr tour guide talked with such a zest and enthusiasm that it makes my adrenaline run wild while listen to the brave stories of the freedom fighters such as William Wallace and Robert the Bruce.

Mr Tour guide claimed that there are 3 things that must be done during the scotland visit. First, eat their famous local delicacies, Haggis (shown in the picture beside which taken from wikipedia). When i first know what it really was, it makes me felt like puking. Basically, it is made with ingredients such as sheep's 'pluck' (heart, liver, and lungs), minced with spices, and traditionally boiled in the animal's stomach. We even found some weird looking haggis keychain which looks like a pouch (Intestine), yucks!!! According to the history, the scottish do in such a way as the ingrediants which is conviniently packaged in a sheep's stomach allowing for easy transportation and last long during the journey.Well, i wasnt sure how it actually tasted cuz i only have a small bite, but Jiavern should know better than me as she finish the whole portion.

The second thing to do during the Scotland trip is to drink their very own scotch whisky while shouted 'Slaintemhath’. For Chinese, we might be familiar with ‘YUM SENGGGGG’ during the drinking session in those boring wedding reception dinner. English might be familiar with ‘cheers’, But for Scottish, they have a unique gealic term-‘Slaintemhath’ which means Good health.

And the last but not list, is to give a kiss to the Mr Tour guide. what a cheeky tour guide we had. (^.^)

On our way we passed by the Linlithgow palace where Mary the Scots was born. According to Mr tour guide, the story of Mary the Scots was the saddest in the history of scotland. She was one of the most fascinating and controversial monarchs of 16th century Europe. She lacked the political skills to rule successfully in Scotland which was mainly due to her bizzare love relationship. Her second and third marriage was unpopular and ended in murder and scandal. She fled to England in 1568, hoping for the help of her cousin, Elizabeth I, the famous English queen. However, the English queen, who feared Catholic plotting on Mary's behalf, and she end up imprisoned for the next nineteen years. She was executed in 1587, only 44 years old, by orders of the English government. However, the most interesting fact is that in 1603, upon Elizabeth's death, Mary's son became king of England as James I as he the only heir that left in the royal family.

It really made me amazed that what kind of story that hidden behind those solid, massive walls of the castle. Imagine centuries ago, how the blood had sheered and all these exciting historical story we hear today really happened. The realization moved me in an undescribable way.

Stirling Castle was said to be the grandest of all Scottish castle. Instead of going in for a rush visit inside the castle, we decided to spent the time wandering around and admire the scenery from the esplanade. The scenery from above was simply stunning. The hills and the sky were like inches away, and it feels like I never been so close to the nature before.

After that, we stopped for lunch at one small café, that’s when we have the chance to see the most amazing creature in the whole world. Hemish- the highland cow. I bought a pack of vegetables which consist of some carrots and potatoes to feed the creature. The massively big creature was surprisingly very tame and friendly. He even licked my palm and leave me a handful of saliva as the welcoming present.

To be continue....