The bowls have eyes

Today, we finished our lovely stay at Graemeshall House.  After breakfast, we chatted with our host, and found out he and his wife are teachers.  His speciality is History, which is appropriate, given the historic nature of the house.  One thing I neglected yesterday, was that Graemeshall House and Skaill House, which adjoins the neolithic settlement Skara Brae were both owned by the local bishop.  Bishops had thrones (of course they did).  When this particular bishop left the church he said “have fun you guys, but ima take the throne with me.” - or something to that effect.  He used the paneling of the throne to make a really cool fireplace, and that fireplace sits in the library of Graemeshall House.We had a bit of a time crunch today, as we had another ferry check-in to make.  It is a good thing the island is pretty small.  We made it with time to spare.  This time, the weather wasn’t as good as our first crossing, so pictures were not really doable.  I tried to fight the ships wi-fi to upload my blog pictures, but that was a non-starter.  So, we just relaxed.  That was a good thing, as I had a lot of driving to do later.As soon as we got off the ferry, we took a little detour to top up on fuel.  Making our way through one-way streets to be able to fuel up took a little doing.  But, before long we were on our way, heading west.  The weather fluctuated between rain with low clouds, and rain with high clouds.  Though it was not great for pictures, I really enjoyed the atmospheric nature of today’s weather.We drove along the northern coast of Scotland, aiming to end up in Ullapool.  This was probably our favorite day for scenery the entire trip.  There weren’t a ton of cars, and it was breathtakingly beautiful.  We aimed to visit a waterfall, but the directions were poor, and I guess we missed it.  However, right where the falls were supposed to be, there were a flock of sheep, right in the road.  I slowed down to avoid hitting them, but two of them just stood there, right on the center line, daring me to run them over.  I didn’t know sheep played chicken.  Carrie enjoyed getting some close-up pictures, and we were off again.We had a bit of a fun time driving behind the worst driver’s I’ve seen so far.  We were stuck behind them for miles, due to the curvy roads.  However, I was able to take advantage of a straightaway, and get around them.  On our next stop at Ardvrek Castle, we were mostly through taking pictures, and here came the troublemakers.  I made sure we left quickly, to avoid getting stuck behind them again.  Ardvrek Castle was constricted by Clan Macleod (there can only be one!) around 1590.  It and the newer manor house are in ruins.  It was nice to stretch the legs a bit, as I had been driving for over 3 hours.Before too long, we were driving through Ullapool, heading to our B&B.  Braemore Square Country Home is a lovely place, and they have Highland Coos in their fields - Carrie would have squealed with joy if she weren’t still a little tired from the dramamine she took for the ferry.  We got checked in and headed back to town for dinner.Finding parking was a challenge.  When we drove by our intended choice for dinner, the place was hopping with a large group of people outside waiting.  After we were able to obtain parking, we were walking the half-mile to the restaurant, and we saw a quieter place that was also a recommended location.  They had seating, so we went in.I was glad they had Thistly Cross again, and Carrie got their Elderflower cider - it was nice.  Once our meals came, Carrie was nonplussed with her plate.  She had ordered Langoustine, and while she got what she ordered, she was not expecting whole mini-lobsters, eyes in tact (staring at her), needing to be cracked open.  It brought back memories of us eating in Cottonwood, CA at this nice restaurant, and when her Seafood Pasta arrived (it DID say calamari on the menu), she saw tiny, whole squids all in her dinner.  She gave me the same look tonight as she did all those years ago.  She actually soldiered through this time, and ate a few of them, but declared the small amount of meat in them was not worth the effort to extract it.Disappointed, we went back to the car, and drove back to the B&B.  Its been a long day, and we’re ready for the night to fall.