Travel through the picturesque Scottish countryside to explore Stirling Castle, where King James VI once lived.
A bit patriotic at Stirling Castle
Then, continue on to Glasgow for a tour with a local guide.
- Discover local highlights, including George Square and the River Clyde.
- Admire the city’s university and medieval cathedral.
- Visit the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, which features everything from medieval suits of armor to a collection of works by Scottish artists.
Said goodbye to “Auld Reekie” this morning. On to Glasgow!
Today we did Stirling Castle and then a museum and tour in Glasgow. The castle was gorgeous, the sun was shining yet again, and I am a happy girl.
Left to right: Kate, Margaret, Jaimie, Sara K., Sara Jane, Viki, me at Stirling Castle
I really like the women I ended up with. There are 20 people (well, 18 now) on the tour. (Two people left. It was an older couple and they somehow managed to misjudge how much walking there is and how profoundly unable to walk they are. So they went home. Sad, but I’m a little glad we don’t have to try to haul them around everywhere.)
I ended up in a group of seven, all connected somewhat to the central figure of Kate, who sort of organized the thing. I know Kate from an online writers group I’m in, but had never met her in person before.
Viki and Sara K. sharing a laugh at a country pub. Photo credit: Margaret
I actually met Viki and Sara K. in line at the airport when Viki saw my travel tag and recognized it from our tour group. Viki is quickly becoming one of my favorite people. She’s smart and hilarious and has the most amazing stories. For work she is a “medical educator,” and what that REALLY means is that she takes medical students on a guided tour of her vagina. Yeah. She teaches how to do crotch doctor stuff (bedside manner, how to use the speculum, etc.) using herself as the example patient. She says, “Basically I do for a living what everyone else has nightmares about: stand in front of a class naked.” She’s amazing.
Sara K. is quieter, but still really interesting. She was married for 11 years and has four grown children. She’s a hospice care nurse. Viki and Sara live near each other and Viki says Sara is basically a celebrity there in the Jewish community. She knows and interacts with everybody. The most interesting thing she’s said so far: “You know what they call it when you’re going into the worst part of your childbirth labor? Transitioning. You know what they call it when you’re being taken off medical treatment and allowed to die? Transitioning. I’m basically a midwife, except for the other end of life.”
This is a restored building in Stirling Castle. It’s this gold color because the building was covered with plaster. It looks weird next to the stone buildings now, but when the castle was new, all of the sandstone would have been this same gold color. It was basically a shiny golden Disney castle.
It’s been really sort of healing to be around all these women, most of whom have gone through their own heartbreaks and divorces and hardships. They’ve all talked a bit about it, as have I, and I think we rarely, as people, get the kind of opportunity we’re getting to talk and share and learn about each other and connect. It’s sort of transcendent, I’d say. And also really fun.
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