Tag Archives: Diana Gabaldon

Reverence and Remembrance… Scotland Day 11

Woke up early this morning and had a brief Skype with Mom as she was up way too late. I captured a beautiful view of the light dawning over the loch next to the house. I eventually wandered downstairs to make myself some tea and eat breakfast. It’s so wonderful to be staying somewhere with a kitchen. Thanks Susan!

WP_20141013_08_33_23_ProBefore too long, Candida and I were ready to hit the road. On today’s agenda was Culloden Battlefield and Clava Cairns. We also had plans to meet up with Lisa, one of the Inverness Outlanders I wasn’t able to meet last week. On the A9 north, we drove through periods of sun, clouds and mist—you know, typical Scottish weather whiplash. By the time we reached Culloden though, the weather seemed to have settled into a period of sun. It was however the coldest day of the trip so far.

At Culloden, we paid our parking and admission fees and headed into the exhibition area of the Visitors’ Centre. The displays of artifacts and explanations of events were very good. I was also glad to have the chance to practice my Gàidhlig comprehension a bit more. (I even managed to try some pronunciations under my breath.) The most moving of the exhibits by far though was the Battlefield Experience. Continue reading →

Stones, Towers and Scones…oh my! Scotland Day 9

Awaking after a wonderful night’s sleep, I couldn’t resist snapping a few photos of the beautiful sunrise over Wigtown. I don’t think I could ever tire of looking out over this beautiful part of Scotland. Everyone should immediately add it to their Scotland itinerary. Heading downstairs, I joined everyone for a delicious breakfast prepared by Deb. I’m going to be in big trouble when I have to go off scrambled eggs and Scottish smoked salmon cold turkey at the end of this trip. Sheila, Candida, Luanne and I listened excitedly as Deb outlined our plans for the day. I was so excited that the day was to start with a visit to standing stones that I’m not sure I heard where else was planned. (Surely my second attempt at going through the stones would be more successful than the first? Practice makes perfect after all and even Roger took more than one try.) We all piled into my trusty little van and set out for our grand adventure.

The standing stones were called the Torhouse Stones and were located in a fenced off corner of a local pasture. The cows looked on in what appeared to be mild amusement at what I am sure they considered amusing human behavior for a Saturday morning. For the most part they stayed quiet and chewed their cud, at least until the farmer arrived! The minute the farmer arrived on his four-wheeler and let himself through the gate, the lowing and mooing commenced! Luckily, he didn’t seem put off by the crazy women being that near his cows. The girls and I just continued taking photos and trying our best to figure out how to get to Jamie. Luanne tried counting all the stones, Sheila and Deb tried patterns, and I finally decided maybe throwing myself across one might work. I’m pretty sure Candida was just sitting quietly and laughing at us. 😉

Rise and shine!
Torhouse Stones
Torhouse Stones
I’m giving it my best shot!

Continue reading →

Disturbance in the Outlander Force – Scotland Day 8

So, today’s post will be a bit brief. Started the day with a bit of a lie-in. Candida was sleeping off her travel and I was grateful for the chance to catch up on some sleep as well. Finally up and at them, I repacked my suitcase for the second half of the trip. It’s been really great to be able to leave my big suitcase at Susan’s and just take what I need on the road. I feel a bit guilty for taking a big bag of laundry with me too.

Today, Candida and I are headed down to southwest Scotland to Wigtown. What is in Wigtown, you might ask? Deborah Firth of Hillcrest House has organized and offered to host a ‘mini’ Outlander fan gathering. The gathering may be small and select, but I expect the fun will be supersized. And how often do you get to stay in an award-winning B&B with friends and spend an entire weekend enjoying each other’s company. Continue reading →

On the cusp of adventure…Alba bound!

Well, I’m sitting here at the airport contemplating the adventure upon which I’m about to embark. Several years ago I probably would never have even considered flying over 4,000 miles away to ramble through the Scottish Highlands on my own (for the first week at least), but this is yet another thing you can chalk up to Diana Gabaldon writing a book.

Not only did reading Outlander directly influence my desire to see the Highlands myself, but it also introduced me to an entire world of new friends with common interests. These common interests and the desire to share in the Outlander community has already led me to Los Angeles, Seattle and San Diego this year. In those places I have met fabulous people with whom I discovered I have way more in common than just Outlander. Some of these people have become really close friends (you know who you are!).

I have also been privileged to make many friends online through Twitter and Facebook groups as well as through this blog, several of whom have been absolutely invaluable in planning this trip.  I have had offers of trip planning advice and more places to stay than I have nights planned for this trip, I think. I just want to take this opportunity to thank everyone who has helped me make this trip a reality.

For those of you who haven’t made it to Scotland yet, or those who haven’t made it back recently enough, I will do my absolute best to keep you up to date on all of my adventures. I’ll be hitting the ground running tomorrow afternoon and don’t expect to stop until I board the flight back home in just over two weeks! For the first week it’s just me, but next week I’ll be joined by the lovely and talented Candida Nunez.  Between the two of us, I promise there will be adventures to write home about and I fully expect to fill the blog with pictures!

Goodbye for now! I have a plane to catch. I’ll meet you back here from the other side of the Atlantic soon!

–Mandy

Episode 108 – Both Sides Now – The Gàidhlig Bits

Wow. This was a humdinger of an episode! (I use humdinger here for Àdhamh, who does love our Southern colloquialisms.) Too bad we have to wait SIX MONTHS to find out what happens next.  We really must think of some ways to pass the time.  I already have a post in the works on the aforementioned Southern colloquialisms, but I will do my best to also come up with some ways to make sure we don’t lose the Gàidhlig we have picked up over the last 8 episodes.

Speaking of picked up Gàidhlig, how many of you were able to understand most, if not all, of the Gàidhlig this week? Pat yourselves on the back!

7:25 Jamie to Hugh Munro

Madainn mhath – Good morning

Slàinte – health/cheers!

a charaid – friend

18:55 Fight with the Grants

Dougal says something at the end of the fight, but I can’t decipher it.

Angus:  Tulach Ard – Mackenzie war cry

19:52 Jamie to Claire after the fight with the Grants

gràidh – love

23:22 Teaching Claire to fight with a knife

taing dhut – thank you

 sgian-dubh – literally a dark blade

33:45 Scene with the deserters

mo graidh – my love

Mo nighean donn – my brown haired lass

37:35 Jamie to Dougal when leaving for Horrocks meeting

Sèo – Here.

Well, that’s it. I hope you have enjoyed picking through the Gàidhlig with me for these last 8 weeks. I can’t wait to see what the next half season brings us in April.  Stay tuned to the blog as I’m leaving for a two-week trip to Scotland on Thursday night.  I plan to post from over there as time permits and I can promise lots of pictures. And, you just never know who I might run into!