Meng's Travels: Clan McTay

Well.....this is it. One of the best tours I've been on, with some of the nicest and friendliest people you will ever meet. Add two knowledgeable and capable tour leaders and you have the formula for a wonderful tour of the Scottish Highlands. I thought that it'd be fitting that since we ended the tour at Dunkeld by the River Tay, we should call our group the Clan McTay. Unfortunately, as soon as we reached Edinburgh, the clan scattered to different parts of the world.

You never know what you are going to get when you sign up for a tour. There's always questions about the people on the tour, especially coming from different backgrounds and countries. And then there is the tour leader/guide/driver, who may follow the itinerary but may add some of his own flavor to the tour. He may take you only to places where he or the company gets a commission or kickback. They time the breaks so that you are at a big store or souvenir shop so that there is nothing for you to do but to buy something.

This tour is different. First, everyone on the bus was nice and got along. Usually in a big group, you have one or two people who are always loud and have all the answers. Then you have one or two who are always late. None on this bus. Some prefer to keep to themselves, some like to socialize. Whatever each person prefer, they have their own space. After 2 or 3 days, everyone start to warm up and feel comfortable with each other. It'd have taken less time if we had all stayed in the same hotel or B&B and regularly have our meals together. Whatever it is, everyone was talking to everyone on the 4th and 5th day of the trip. Unfortunately, the tour lasted only 5 days.

I was surprised that we have two tour leaders/guides on this trip, with a small group of 20. Don, who did all the driving, and Dave, are both natives Scots. While Don is driving, Dave is giving us the history lesson, in thick Scottish accent. I could hear my brain cranking away trying to decipher what he said. Since I was sitting next to him, I was wondering if I was going to talk like Dave at the end of the tour. Both of them are very proud of their country. They showed passion, and sometimes emotion, in what they do and what they convey to us about the violent history of Scotland. Almost every historical site has a violent history to it, either between the clans or with invaders from the east (Vikings) or south.

Dave, with his rust-colored beard and long hair, looks like he may be one of the Jacobites from the past.

On this trip, I am reading a book by Neil Oliver, called "This History of Scotland." Every Scot told me that it is a good book and was factually correct. It was made into a TV series many years ago by the BBC. I was learning all about Scotland four ways: this book, Dave and Don, visiting the places, and from my friend, Watt, whom I am staying with in Edinburgh.