Anderspluscindy

The more days we spent in Scotland, the more we fell in love with this beautiful country. Pleased that we chose to embark on this less touristy road trip. Now leaving behind the amazing landscapes, we are ready to be charmed by the quaint little towns.

16th May 2017

08:00 | Made breakfast at Aberdeen Airbnb
This is the only time we prepared a meal for ourselves during the trip. A very simple meal but full of goodness!

10:00 | Explore Aberdeen city
Popped by the Union Square mall to get train tickets and tried to do some shopping. That did not last long as we could not wait to drive to a nearby town instead of hanging out in the city.

12:00 | Lunch at The Bay Fish & Chips, Stonehaven
I always trust Anders to find good places for food. And once again he did it! He drove us to a seaside town, Stonehaven, where The Bay Fish & Chips is located. The fish & chips is absolutely delicious! It is fried to perfection, so crispy but not greasy! 

Sat at the table in front of the store to eat our fish & chips! It was a little challenging to eat with the strong wind blowing towards us but we still enjoyed our food very much. We were people-watching while eating, and seeing locals in suits coming in for lunch, families with kids and people walking their dogs, made us felt like we were in a really pleasant neighbourhood.

Before moving on to our next destination, we went into the Aunty Betty’s Sweet Shop next door for a cup of milkshake blended using fresh scoops of chocolate ice-cream. What a perfect way to end our lunch! 

14:00 | Short hike up to the Stonehaven War Memorial
The Stonehaven War Memorial is situated at very calming location where we could overlook the sea and greenery. On the way up, there are many memorial benches where you can seat and view the beautiful town of Stonehaven. Not exactly sure why, but I felt a bit of sadness there.

15:00 | Lazed around Dunnottar Castle
Sadly, Dunnottar Castle was closed due to high winds during our visit. So instead, we spent some time laying on the grass while admiring the castle’s magnificent from afar. The perfectly-perched castle ruin on a rocky headland, surrounded by cliffs and the North Sea, really took our breath away! 

17:00 | Ice cream time at Jannettas Gelateria, St Andrews
After our one and a half hour drive, we were craving for some ice cream. Found a cute pastel tone ice cream cafe – Jannettas Gelateria. The pistachio ice cream cake I had and raspberry ripple he ordered is so yummy!

17:30 | Peeked into the St Andrews Cathedral
Once again we got rejected at the entrance as we were too late for its last entry is at 17:00. Despite that, we still managed to get a glimpse of St Andrews Cathedral. 

18:00 | Strolled towards the St Andrews Pier
Continued to stroll through the town of St Andrews and saw many colourful boats docked along the river. Following those boats while snapping away, we were slowly led to a pier that overlooked the North Sea. We sat there and enjoyed the calming view.

Soon, we witnessed a group of teenagers running over to the edge of the pier, took off their clothes… and jumped into the cold sea!!! There were laughter when they got off the water, so we can imagine that it was all for good fun. Perhaps an orientation activity for them joining University of St Andrews where Prince William and Kate met? 

19:00 | Dined at Harry Ramsden’s at the Forth Bridges
Before making our way into Edinburgh, we stopped over near the Forth Bridges for our dinner. The food there was as delicious as its view. 

The Forth Bridges comprises of three bridges. First bridge to be built there in the 1880s is the Forth Bridge which is an impressive-looking railway bridge. Second bridge is Forth Road Bridge built in 1958 for cars and pedestrians. Third bridge is Queensferry Crossing which was not due for use when we were there. But the way the second and third bridge being side by side looked interesting from afar. 

Today, I can totally establish that it’s the small towns that kept my heart beating. Also, I wonder if I’m the only one that goes ga-ga over wild flowers?

You can read up on the rest of our 17 days’ adventure in Scotland and England here