Iona

Sometimes during travels, nothing goes right. Missed connections, delayed trains and planes, lost items, destinations that are less than one was hoping for. Today was not one of those days; in fact, today was pretty perfect.

This morning was a bit of a rush. We decided at the last minute to try to get our car on the ferry to Mull, since it would eliminate waiting around for a bus. We knew it would be tricky without a reservation, and indeed when we pulled up and talked to the ferry guy, he said it might not work out...but directed us to a long line of stand-by cars to wait and try our luck. If we didn't get on, the next ferry was also completely booked, so our whole itinerary was hinged on this working out.

The ferry pulled up, the walking passengers boarded, all the non-stand-by folks drove on, the trucks, the tour buses...and then they started letting stand-by folks on, one by one. All the cars in front of us made it. Then, we heard the guy down at the loading zone tell the guy about to take our tickets to hold up - no more cars. Someone has to be the first one not to make it...but we were so disappointed. Then, the loading zone guy looked up and saw us, and must have remembered our conversation. "Go ahead," he told the ticket-taker, "I want to get these girls to Iona today". Hooray! We drove down, and after a bit of rearranging, squeezed ourselves into the teeny little spot. Last car on. I'm so thankful for they guy who helped us out - and may I say, this type of kindness and consideration has cropped up so many, many times here in Scotland. Here's what it looked like after I parked:


The ride to Mull is pleasant, about 45 minutes long, and full of castle views. Here's Duart castle, which we toured when we got on the island, since it was on our drive to the other end of Mull where we could catch the ferry to Iona.


The drive across the island was beautiful - and the single track roads were much easier to navigate than I thought they'd be. See a car coming? Whoever has the first opportunity to pull over does so, and then as you pass you give each other a thumbs up or a friendly wave. See a sheep or goat? Well, if you're a local, ease on by. If you're a tourist from California, pull up and snap some photos:


After about an hour, we pulled up, parked for free overnight, and hopped on the 10 minute ferry to Iona. You can see the abbey from the opposite shore:


Our hotel was also just right on the shore, in fact here's a shot from our bedroom window:


We checked in, and meandered over to the abbey. People have lived and been in religious communities on this island since the 6th century, which is about when this cross dates from:


After a good long look through the buildings, I walked out to the little field in between the abbey and the shore. Donica finds my whole "sheep are cute!" mentality strange, but she took a picture for me anyway:


Much later, after a delicious and very Scottish dinner at the hotel restaurant, I went out for another walk. It was just beginning to get dark, at about 10:15, but not too dark for a picture of the main "road" of the town:


I took a little video, which I'll post here, but must warn you of a mistake...I accidentally call the island across the water "Oban" instead of Mull - Oban is the little town we stayed in last night. Whoops.



And in closing, I'll just say that this island is the most peaceful place I think I've ever been. There is a very very close second on a little farm in Tuscany, but Iona has an extra quality that pervades the atmosphere and stills the mind and soul. I wish it weren't so far away from my real life.