On the Bonnie, Bonnie banks. . .

So I was in Loch Lomond and went to my first Scottish Castle, The Balloch Castle. Small by castle standards and not a ruin but it was also not built for defensive purposes. The first castle built near the spot where Balloch stands was a real garrisoned fort but that was long before the current castle was built which was built as a status symbol and as such sits up high, overlooking the loch and is position such that it is a view from the loch as well. The era that is was built in was kinda the beginning of the 'keeping up with the Jones' period. After taking a look see around the castle and the castle grounds, the walled garden, the secret garden, getting lost in the castle country park, I made my way to the dock and took a wee cruise on the loch during which I was able to see the view of the castle. Man, back then those folks really liked that 'master of all I survey' attitude, didn't they. This guy was kind of pissed when the other guy built his estate home right across the loch from him.

So that was pretty much Loch Lomond except for the aquarium which I did the day before. Now it really was time for Braveheart country. Lots of folks know William Wallace because an Austrailian born American made a film about the Scottish Man of the year (c.297) but the Scots have had this guy in their hearts forever. Anyway, I went to Stirling. That's where the guy made a name for himself and Mel Gibson got a lot of it wrong or at least took lots of liberty with the story. Most of the cities big enough to attract tourists have a city tour bus that hits the highlights. You pay way more than you would pay to just ride a regular bus to and from a particular site but these tours let you get off the bus at any site and then get on a later tour bus. Depending on the time of year and the size of the city, the buses come at regular intervals. Lucky for me the siteseeing bus for Stirling stopped right in front of the train station. So I almost stepped off the train from Balloch and onto the bus. My first hop off the bus was at the Wallace Monument. The battle that was his claim to fame was in 1297. The monument was built in the late 1800s. Shows you how long the Scots been thinkin' about this guy. There are 246 steps to the top of the monument. I know that because all the placards and pamphlets tell say so. It's really really windy at the top. None of the placards or pamphlets bother to tell you that! There is a bronze statue of Wallace about a 1/3 of the way up but you can't get a good photo of it cuz it's on the outside of the building. One the first level of the tower on the way up is a Wallace history exhibit and includes at large plexiglass case labeled 'The Wallace Sword' but the audio guide informs you that there not sure it's the exact sword but it's close enough. The sword in the case measures a little over about 5.5 feet so they all figure Wallace must have been a really big and brawny guy to have weilded such a blade. I have never had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Gibson but somebody mentioned they had seen him and he ain't that tall. Makes you go hmmmm. Anyway, I hopped back on the next bus and though there were a few more places I might have visited if I were staying in Stirling but I stayed on the bus until I reached the Stirling Castle. Much bigger than Balloch and most definitely a defensive structure however. . .(to be continued!). . .