What a rough night! The bed was awfully soft, which is not great for my back. We'd had to set up the CPAP machine on a chair with the cord stretched across to the opposite wall to be plugged in. Every time I got up during the night, I had to unplug the machine so that I could get to the bathroom. Ugh!
We got up at 6:10 to get some stretching in before breakfast at 7.
Once again, the snippy waitress was there to order everyone to the tables assigned to us. I was able to get porridge today and I treated myself to some really good ham or their version of bacon. I was also able to get fresh fruit and one of those chocolate croissants that I like so much.
We were on the road at 8:08 and pretty much followed the A849 across the island. The road was rather rough at times. The high temperature today was to be 57 on the Isle of Iona and we'd dressed for it. I was glad that I was going to get some use out of the scarf I'd brought from home.
Along the way, our guide Roseanne told us about St. Columba (521-597) coming to Iona with 12 monks and establishing a monastery. A couple of centuries later, the Book of Kells, which we'd seen in Dublin's Trinity College on a trip to Ireland, was probably written at this monastery. The monastery became a center for Christianity for centuries and it is considered the birthplace of
At 9:28, we reached our destination, the ferry port Fionnphort. We had a little time to use the restroom before walking down the hill to the port itself. It was very photogenic, as it was a beautifully clear day for once.
The Isle of Iona at only 3 miles by 1.5 miles isn't really big enough to navigate with the bus, so we walked onto the ferry at 9:50. As we did, I marveled at the colors and clarity of the water on this far side of Scotland. I was also amazed that the ferry basically dropped its back door at the end of the road!
We set sail at 10 and docked at Iona just 12 minutes later. Again, the back door of the ferry was dropped at the end of the road. The water over here was gorgeous, too. The town ahead of us seemed to be just stretched along the island. It was also cold and windy.
Roseanne gave us maps and then led us to the monastery. She talked along the way, but I didn't hear much, as we were in the back of the pack and my knees would not allow walking fast enough. We passed through the gate at the Iona Nunnery, with St. Ronan's Church on the same grounds. They were ruins now, of course, but still evocative.
We soon came upon the first Celtic cross of the day, Maclean's Cross. It is believed that the circle part of a Celtic cross was put there to strengthen the cross beam and prevent breakage.The cross is thought to have been commissioned by a chieftain of the Maclean clan.
There weren't really many people walking down the road, but we did pass some sheep happily grazing.
Roseanne took us as far as the visitor center for St. Oran's Chapel and the Iona Abbey, which now is home to the Iona Community. (It is a Christian ecumenical community that works for peace and social justice, rebuilding community and renewal of worship.) She got our tickets and handed out the headsets. There were not enough for each of us to have one. So, couples, like my husband K and I, shared. However, once we were on the grounds, someone found another set and gave it to K.
The first thing we came upon was a rocky knoll called Tòrr an Aba (the Hill of the Abbot). It is thought that St. Columba's writing hut had been at the summit. Some folks in our tour group climbed it, but neither of us did. Nearby were the remains of the "Street of the Dead", some of whose stones could be seen through the grass.
Next up, were a couple of Celtic crosses in front of the chapel, only one of which is the original. The remains of the originals of the other one as well as two others that used to be here are in a museum behind the chapel. The one still standing in its original spot after 1200 years is St. Martin's Cross. While the sun behind it looked cool, it was impossible to photograph the Biblical scenes on that side. The other side, which faced the water came out fine and looks just like many you see of it online. It was really amazing to stand in front of something that old that is that ornate. The Biblical scenes were definitely on the windward side, as they were quite worn.
The other cross is a replica of St. John's Cross and stands right in front of the St. Columba Shrine, which is where the saint is believed to have been buried.
We next entered the church, which is in very good shape. Of course, it should be, as it was mostly reconstructed after the Eighth Duke of Argyll donated the land in 1900 and whose grave is here. Time and the Protestant Reformation had not been kind. We knew that it was still in use and we tried to determine what denomination it was. I did not see any of the usual signs of Catholicism and we know little about the Scottish Church. So, we picked up a handy hymnal and found that it was used by the Iona Community, mentioned earlier, but unknown until this moment. The bottom of the baptismal font is new, I knew from the Rick Steves
Scotland book. It was hard to tell what was original material elsewhere and what was not. Some of the capitals had carvings like we'd seen at Rosslyn Chapel.
There was a lovely modern stained glass window dedicated to St. Columba. A sign called him the "Dove of the Church", which is a bit odd considering what I read about his battles in Ireland before he came here in exile. The sign went on to say that the island was inhabited, when he arrived in 563, as it had been since prehistoric times. In fact, it is believed that pagan holy men had lived here.
I never saw the cloister entrance, but that's okay. Before I went through the vestibule to the side door that led outside, I took note of the view one had and liked it.
Outside, I took photos of that side of the church, as well as of the scenery, all the while battling the wind that tried to remove my scarf.
Rick Steves was right- the museum
is hard to find. However, we followed his directions and found it around the backside of the church. There was no sign of the treasures that awaited us inside.
The museum was well-laid out and rather modern. The signage was great. In fact, I'll let the signs explain the pictures.
We were both impressed by the museum. When we went back to the visitors center, I checked out the gift items. I found a cross pin for my pin collection, as well as a metal replica of St. Martin's cross for my accumulation of religious articles from places I've visited.
We headed north on the path, taking in the sights. It was a gorgeous day, if a bit cold for us. We walked as far as the Iona Community Welcome Center, which had free restrooms, that we availed ourselves of. They had a nice shop and I bought a couple of things before we headed back down the island.
There was a rocky ridge to the west of us and we were not going to get all the way to the southern part of the island. But, we were enjoying what we saw. We stopped at the menu posted at the St. Columba Hotel. Not only was it expensive, but they were serving lunch yet. I quickly ducked in a place that advertised crafts, but nothing spoke to me.
11:55 found us at the Iona Heritage Center Café. It was too chilly to sit in the garden area, so we planned to eat inside the charming stone building. There were only a couple of people ahead of us at the counter, but there weren't that many tables that we wanted to take a chance. So, I decided what I wanted and passed that on to K and took a seat. He brought my Elderflower Lemonade (Ł 1.35) and pulled out one of our water bottles for himself. The lemonade was quite good. We had a fair amount of time to sit there and wait, while listening to Motown on the radio. Talk about surreal! Meanwhile, some others of our tour group also chose to eat here. Finally, the food came. We split our two meals, as usual- ham, cheese and Dijon toastie (Ł3.50) and a mule beef sausage sandwich (Ł5.50). They were both good, but I did prefer the ham I'd chosen.
When we finished lunch, we felt that we didn't really have time to explore the Heritage Center. So, we continued our walk toward the ferry launch site. Along the way, we came upon St. Ronan's Chapel, which I just had to photograph to send to my former student Ronan K, when we got back to the hotel WiFi. I hadn't even known there was a St. Ronan!
We stopped at the SPAR, but all it had were groceries. Another stop- the post office- was also a bust.
When we reached the ferry spot, others of our group were there. While I went to the ladies' restroom line, K agreed to walk further south along the road to see if there was something of interest. The line took a long time and the restrooms were much like the ones you find at the beach, which is not a compliment. When I came out, K told me that there was indeed a shop down there. I hurried down and found all sorts of items in the Iona tartan. Finally, I found ribbons of the stuff in various lengths. I bought one and a shell with the idea that I can make an ornament from some of it and, perhaps, dollhouse pillows with more of it. Happy find!
When I got back to the line, the mother, Cari from Michigan, overheard me talking about my find. At her request, I took her and her daughter Megan down to the shop and showed them where to find the ribbon. They got some, too.
While waiting for our time on the ferry, I took some pictures of the beautiful water to the south of the ferry dock. I couldn't see seashells, so I didn't bother to try to get any. I am so glad that we got to visit this wonderful little island! I'm also beyond glad that the weather was so clear.
The crossing back to Mull was uneventful. When we got back, we climbed the hill to get on the bus. We departed at 1:35. I dozed at least some of the way back.
We reached the hotel at 3. We had a couple of hours before our optional excursion. So, I settled in to do some needlework, while K went to do a few laps at the pool. I feared his suit wouldn't dry in time to leave the hotel tomorrow, but he'd brought it all this way. He enjoyed his swim and even had time to shower before we had to be out at the bus again.
We had to be on the bus by 5:10, which might seem to be an odd time to head off on an optional excursion to a castle. In this case, though, it made sense. We had to wait for the tourists to clear out so that we could have a personal tour, which is what they do for Globus. So, that meant waiting until after closing to visit. Roseanne told us that sometimes Sir Lachlan Hector Charles Maclean of Duart and Morvern, chief of the clan, actually shows up to talk to these personal tours. Wow!
However, when we arrived, the guide told her that Sir Lachlan was in fact away today. How unfortunate! The castle was undergoing repairs, which have evidently been a bit of a constant since the castle was restored in 1910 as an Edwardian home. With 283 days a year of rainfall, the weather on this cliff is not kind to the castle, although it is rather clear today. It overlooks water, which is advantageous for watching your enemies and your commerce, but not good for mortar.
We were lead into the courtyard, where we were told about the Maclean clan and its history, as well as the history of the castle. The family still lives in the portion of the castle to the right of the courtyard.While listening, I appreciated the roof line and the little bird I saw up there. The age of the rowan tree ( it dates to 1935) surprised me. I'd have expected an older one.
Before sending us off to walk through the first floor, the guide warned us of the stairs that would be needed to climb to the second floor. However, there was also a sort of grand staircase, that would appeal to those of us with mobility issues.
I found the first floor quite interesting. The kitchen was all decked out, but still showed wear. There was a passage to a window that gave you a feeling of just how massive the castle was.
While the most of the others made their way up a narrow, winding staircase, I proceeded on through the lower floor to a broad, straight staircase. I missed a room or so, but that was fine. I joined the group in a sort of enclosed porch Sir Fitzroy had built in 1912 during the restoration. The guide talked to us a bit more, before letting us in to what was a huge room that might pass for a ballroom, but it had a huge dining table, various other tables, pianos, etc.
I decided to not climb to the next floor, but rather look at the video that was offered to those of us who did not climb. K went up and took great shots of the view and the bedroom. The guide pointed to where Ben Nevis would be off in the distance and it would be just off the center of the last photo.
After the tour, we were led down to the gift shop, where a treat awaited us -free white wine and Tobermoray 12- year whiskey. I chose the former, while K took the latter, of course. We roamed about the shop and I found a few items to buy, also of course. Brenda Lee from Halifax was looking at the same great coats that I was. I would have loved it, if one had been in my size, because they seemed to be great raincoats. She wanted to get one, but her husband Brian pointed out that they were continuing on to Wales after our tour ended in Glasgow and asked where she would pack it. She and I both felt it was easily carried. She wound up buying it.
We were back on the road at 7:10 and at the hotel ten minutes later. When K and I dumped stuff in the room, I looked out the window and realized that the castle we'd seen last night was Duart!
Dinner was at 7:30 and we shared a table with Brenda Lee and Brian. It's always a lively conversation with Brian and I enjoyed talking to Brenda Lee, too. We told them about the play we'd seen just before our trip,
Come from Away. It was about the people of Gander, Newfoundland taking in the "plane people" after 9/11. They both agreed that that is what those folks are like.
K and I both ordered the prawn cocktail, which looked nothing like shrimp cocktail. It came with bread triangles and was heavy on the mayo. K's entree was Aramore Fish Salmon Fillet, which he liked. I went for Bende of Beef. I have no idea what it means, but there was no red on the meat and it came with gravy and vegetables. It wasn't bad. For dessert we tried the bread and butter pudding and the raspberry fool. They both seemed rather British and tasted good.
We didn't finish dinner until 8:50. Then, it was back to the room to pack, as we are moving on tomorrow to Glasgow, our final stop on the tour.
The phone says that I walked 8,959 steps for a total of 2.9 miles. Insanely, it says I climbed 22 floors!
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