Our Trip to Scotland - September, 2004

by John G. and Silvia Turnbull

Editor’s Note: John and Silvia toured Scotland first by guided tour and then on their own.  This  recount begins when they ventured out on their own.  To read the complete story go to http://www.turnbullclan.com/features/jgt_trip_to_scotland.htm. Be sure to also look at John’s many wonderful photographs of their trip.  From the website, select pictures and members photo galleries, click on the  John G. Turnbull icon .

...After the tour was over, we were on our own.  So having seen Glasgow, and wanting to spend more time in Edinburgh, we took the Scottish Rail train from Glasgow to Edinburgh.  While the trip should have lasted about 45 minuets, it took much longer, due to the fact that some cows had broken down a fence and wondered unto the tracks.  A sharp eyed engineer stopped the train in time, not repeating the same error that occurred about 30 years ago, when the cows caused the train to crash, resulting in several casualties.

Having settled in at our Edinburgh hotel, just to the south of the Castle, we spent two days wandering around the city and visiting areas that we missed, including Grey Friar’s Church where the famous dog Greyfriar’s Bobby is buried in consecrated ground.  Every day fresh flowers are put on his grave.  It is an endearing story, and I think reflects something that is very true about the Scottish Character.

Then on Sunday we drove to Hawick.  It was my first time driving a car sitting on the right side and driving on the left side of the road.  Thankfully, there was an easy to follow main road between Hawick and Edinburgh.  Hawick was deserted on the Sunday morning we arrived, and on the next three days, it did not seem to be much more populated.  It was sad to see that the premises of 51 High Street where The Turnbull Clan Association was founded by John F. Turnbull in 1977 were up for sale, but it is understandable that one must move on due to economic necessity.

Statue of Greyfriar’s Bobby, Edinburgh, Scotland

We took tours of Peebles and Galashiels.  In Galashiels, we visited Loch Carron Mills where our Tartan is woven, but we were not permitted to visit the factory because it was closed for some refurbishing and testing.

We revisited Selkirk, and on many occasions got lost on the side roads of the Borders, but thanks to some very polite and

The article also includes a brief history of the area from about the 7^th century AD.

We left Hawick on Thursday and drove back to Edinburgh and then over to Glasgow, mainly because there are no major roads directly from Hawick to Glasgow.  We were able to see the heart of Scotland from Edinburgh to Glasgow, but as with most major roads, one would have to get off the road to visit the small towns between each city.  Nevertheless, in this area, there is a true sense of economic vitality.

There is something to be said for going on tours and also for being on your own.  I think that we were fortunate in that we got a very good tour to cover most but not all of Scotland (missing the City of Sterling – where my direct ancestor came from, and Bannockburn) but then again choices have to be made.  I definitely would revisit the far north and  the Shetland Island.  Another visit to Argyll would also be necessary, but what truly amazed me was that the amount of history and historical places existing in the lowlands and the midlands of Scotland.

My view is that on the first trip to a country or a city, the best thing that you can do is get a general tour.  Then you can learn where you want to revisit and areas that you do not want to go back to.

Oh yes one final thing - the Weather.  It was just perfect.  It rained only 4 hours on one day and that was when we were at Glenfinnan, and I wondered if it rained when Bonnie Prince Charlie had landed in 1745.  Probably not, because he would have turned around and gone back to France.