9 Days in Scotland: Day One: Troon

Our first trip to Scotland last year, was one of the absolute best trips we have ever had! Scotland spoke to our souls in ways we’ve never experienced before in our travels; through the land and the sea, through the food and through the people…. Scotland touched us and became a part of us forever.

My words can never truly convey the impact this land had, and still has on us… but through my photos, hopefully you’ll gain a glimpse into this beautiful land and our pictorial journey across Scotland, from Glasgow to Isle of Syke and back… and all the stops in between!!

This trip was a culmination of both my boyfriend’s and my own loves in life… his love of golf, my love for photography and our joined love for food, drink and new places. We had a wonderfully planned (but not too planned) 9 days ahead of us!

..and away we go!

We LOVE flying late in the evening no matter where we are headed, you arrive bright and early the next day at your destination with the entire day ahead to begin your journey with no wasted “travel” time! …granted you may be lacking in sleep if you don’t nape on the plane, but for us, the adrenaline and excitement flowing through us once our feet hit the ground are enough to carry us through!

Flying to Scotland from Maryland didn’t offer many non-stop options in our price range, none that didn’t take over 12 hours of travel time – so with had a little layover at Heathrow, bright and early, we had time to stretch our legs and find a bite to eat.

I never expect much from airport food, but I’m always hopeful one day, something will surprise me, and The Giraffe World Kitchen did! Even though it was 5am, being up since departing the night before, I wasn’t in the mood for a traditional breakfast, I rarely am… so the breakfast “Bahn Mi” sounded right up my alley. It was actually pretty good… fresh and tasty and lighter than a typical breakfast sandwich.

Bellies full, we put our feet up as we waited for our second leg of journey.

TOUCHDOWN!!!! We arrived at Glasgow Airport around noon on September 27th, and we wasted no time! We picked up our luggage and headed to the rental car pick up and we’re off…. On our way to our first stop…. Troon.

Troon was little under and hours drive from Glasgow, allowing us the ample time to get acclimated to driving on the other side of road as well as taking directional cues from our rented Garmin aiding us on our way.

It’s kind of funny, we really missed hearing her voice after we got home and parting was such sweet sorrow when we packed up and shipped her back to Auto Europe Rental… who I may add have the best prices on rental cars for Scotland and Ireland and from whom you can rent a GPS for a very reasonable price! …better than the exorbitant daily add on fees direct from the car rental agencies. Auto Europe will FedEx your GPS within 3 days from your departure with prepaid shipping to send it back within 3 days from when you arrive home (all included in the price). So yes, you have to pack it and bring it with, but because it’s a sand alone GPS you can take it from the car in the evenings once you’ve retired to your room for the night and enter and destinations for the next day, or even before you leave if you want to. It may even be more cost effective to purchase your own Garmin, which would pay for itself in about 3 trips – but be sure to purchase one with expandable memory and LIFETIME map updates for the regions you travel most.

I digress… so with he help of our Garmin (we should have given her a name) and some google maps I printed before leaving on our trip…. we arrived at our first accommodation for stay in Scotland, the Marine Hotel, the ideal place to stay for someone with a 9:00am Tee Time on the adjacent Royal Troon Golf Course.

We checked in to The Marine Hotel around 2:30, after a little unpacking and some post-flight freshening up… though we were travel tired, we were excited to do or see something, so we got back into the car and go…. somewhere!

The weather was a little cloudy, a little rainy and we weren’t near a whole lot of anything… but there was a beach nearby which sounded absolutely perfect to us! We walked the shore, picked some sea shells, and even tested the very frigid water before getting back in the car to drive around and see what’s what!

The rain did not damper our excitement to be in Scotland, in fact I think it had the opposite effect, ever since being back after this trip, I have new found love and appreciation for a rainy day.

Next thing up – food! There was an Oyster place we wanted to check out, but unfortunately they were closed, so since we were near where we planned to dine that evening, we stopped in to make a reservation (didn’t need it but we like to be safe), we find while traveling, there is so much to do during the day, that a late dinner is the perfect ending to it!

As the initial vacation rush began to ebb, we realized… WE WERE TIRED!! It’s funny how each vacation teaches us something for the next, and this one we leaner its OK to not be GOING and DOING and sometimes the best thing to do on a trip of a lifetime, is to do nothing!!!

So, back to our hotel we went to chill and unwind and relax until dinner. And what better place to do this than at the hotel’s pub! …we sat, we relaxed and we took it all in, being fully present and soaking up the fact that we… were finally…. in Scotland!! … a euphoric calm that no drug can ever duplicate! …of course the pint in our hand didn’t hurt!!

With plenty of time until diner, we grabbed a bite too. Though we do LOVE British Airways and as airplane food goes, they do have some of the best, we just needed something more, but nothing that will ruin dinner…..CHIPS!!! And like in Ireland, the tables are stacked with condiments that know the way to my heart!!!! …what doesn’t Mayo, Ketchup, Malt Vinegar & HP Sauce maker better??!! The only thing missing was some Coleman Mustard!!

After a pint (or two) our fatigue really beginning to set in, and with Nate’s tee time for his first round on a true championship links course first thing in the morning… we were ok with calling it an early night, so we rang up DINNER and moved our reservation to NOW! ..well after a quick shower and change of clothes, then it was off to our first dinner in Scotland.. and as always, us being in search of the most amazing seafood we can find, Nate found Scotts Troon Bar!!

We enjoyed our experience at Scotts, on the water, beautiful views over the harbour and the interior decor was contemporary and modern without feeling pretentious… it was a very comfortable setting!

We perused the menu as we enjoyed a bottle of wine, and since it was our first night, we tried really hard not to let ur eyes be bigger than our stomachs (a habit we have yet to break!) … so we skipped the appetizers, we skipped the salads and went right in for the real deal… two seafood platters that sounded right up our alley and didn’t seem like too much food. … ha, huge fail. SO MUCH FOOD! … but we were ok with it! …told you, old habits!

The smoked salmon was amazing (our favorite part), the prawns tender, the clams juicy… and I could go on!!! But it was TOO MUCH and we wasted so much 😦 but we were full and we were happy!!! …and oh so tired! “Check Please!”

Back to The Marine we went and as full and tired as we were….. it WAS our first night and we just couldn’t go to bed yet… just one more pint… a night cap, a local brew, to bring the evening to a close!