For those of you who have been following my journey since the beginning of this Substack, you know exactly why I went to Scotland. For those of you who are new here…click here for the beginning of this story. :)
I went to Scotland to see my boyfriend. I feel a little too old to be using that word, but I also kind of like it - it makes me feel like I’m in high school again.
I don’t think I’ve fully told you the whole story about Scotland.
Let’s go back to the beginning of 2023, almost a year and a half ago. I was knee deep in my obsession with the show Outlander, a series set in Scotland (if you haven’t watched…I highly recommend it). Watching the show bumped Scotland to the top of my travel list - the scenery looked so beautiful and I was dying to see it. Not to mention, the main character in the show became my celebrity crush and he was single in real life (as far as I could tell)….and he came up on a dating app I was on at the time. A bit delusional I know. ;)
At the same time, my family loves to travel together and everyone golfs, so I pitched the idea to go on a family golf trip to Scotland. Everyone thought it was a great idea - so we got to planning. Late last year we finally booked our trip to Scotland for this July.
I met my Scottish man in Florida a few weeks later in late December of 2023. Not only is he Scottish, but it turns out we were booked to play golf at his golf club. It felt a little like I was destined to meet him one way or another.
So here we are at the present, I just got back from visiting him in Scotland where I met his family and friends and saw all the places he loves…and of course some Outlander sites too.
The trip couldn’t have gone better. He has already met my family and spent time in my world so it was really meaningful for me to get to do the same in his world. Our time together has been a bit unorthodox - we “live together” each time we’re together, but then go stretches where we’re apart. The apart times are not fun, but they do give me time to reflect on our progress. I’m very much looking forward to the next time we’re together, which will be when I’m back in Scotland for the trip I had planned with my family in July.
I wish I had a ton of great recommendations or an itinerary for you, but this trip really wasn't about seeing Scotland...it was about meeting the important people in his life. But I won’t leave you with nothing! If you’re traveling to Scotland any time soon, below are a few highlights and recommendations from my trip. Edinburgh is an amazing city, but the town of North Berwick was the unexpected highlight for me (shown in the last photo below)!
Sushi in Edinburgh
Thai in Edinburgh (with some of the best views in the city)
Breakfast in Edinburgh (in a cute neighborhood)
Cafe in North Berwick
Gallery in North Berwick
Cafe in Gullane (my meal shown below)
Gleneagles (in the 7th pic below) - a gorgeous 5 star hotel. If you don’t stay here, it is still worth it to stop for a stroll, bite, or spa day.
Cafe/ B&B in Faulkland (shown above) - this is where the hotel Clare and Frank stay at in Inverness, (though it is not actually in Inverness), in Outlander.