Skip to main content

What's the Story in Tobermory...?

Finally, after a very busy two weeks, I have found time to write a blog post about one of the many things I did on my fabulous tour around Scotland.
Our week started with the drive up to Scotland. Okay, so I think we all knew this wasn't going to be the highlight of our trip but I can't think ANY of us imagined how long the journey would take us. Usually, London to the place we were going to be staying for a while in Scotland takes approximately 7-8 hours- quite a long time, yes? Well, our journey took us over 13.5 hours... Nearly DOUBLE our expectation! And that was all because of a (huge) bit of traffic in Birmingham. Although I normally love Birmingham, on that day, I had a particular hatred towards the place...

Despite the fact that we'd had a pretty horrendous drive up, we had not been put off doing another long drive to the Isle of Mull the day after we arrived. Yup, back in the car we all got; suitcases repacked and sleeping bags re-stacked.
We were off to find out what truly was the story in Balamory.

The Isle of Mull is home to only 3,000 people and is situated off the western coast of Scotland. The 'capital' of the island is Tobermory, more commonly known as Balamory. Yep, believe it or not, that children's TV programme you watched when you were younger isn't actually filmed in a place called Balamory and Miss Hoolie isn't really the local nursery teacher. However, the multi-coloured houses are definitely real and it truly is a very pretty place.
The colourful houses of Tobermory
Our accommodation whilst in Tobermory was a small (like everything else in the town) youth hostel and our room had a sea view! That brick-coloured building in the picture above- that's where we stayed. I would definitely recommend it for an affordable break away. 

Tobermory is pretty quiet. No, actually, it's VERY quiet. As much as I liked it there, if you're planning on going, I would not stay there for more than two whole days because, as I said earlier, it is very small. That said, the trip would be a very worthwhile one if you do what we did when we were there: we went on a wildlife and whale-watching boat trip. 
Okay, okay, unfortunately, we didn't see a Minke whale, nor did we see any Bottlenose dolphins, but we did see seals, an eagle, porpoises AND lots and lots of puffins- still a pretty impressive bunch of animals for a day trip out!

At 7 hours long, the boat trip is definitely not for people who feel slightly uneasy out at sea but the boat felt very secure and was not fazed by the waves. Unknown to us when we left, the boat takes you to 2 magnificent islands: Lunga and Staffa. 

The first of the two islands we visited was Lunga- a wildlife photographer's haven!

                                                               So many pretty flowers!

 Lunga provided us with the most picturesque views across the sea- and these photos weren't even take from the top!
Why didn't I go to the top you ask? Erm, something to do with my fear of heights...


                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   Lunga is an animal's paradise,with the main focus being the absolutely adorable puffins!



 This photo just makes you realise how HUGE Sea Eagles are!
The second island we visited was Staffa. Famous for its unusual rock shapes, the island has recently featured on the TV programme Coast, and is visited by people from across the globe. Two people I met on the boat trip had flown all the way from America to visit Scotland and Staffa was one of the highlights of their trip across the pond.


 An extraordinary sight: the basalt columns of Staffa

 A main feature of the Isle of Staffa is Fingal's Cave. Formed naturally, the cave measures 230ft in depth and 60ft in height. The island is cared for by the National Trust and they have fortunately provided handrails so that visitors can walk on a thin path into the cave without feeling too much like they're going to take the plunge into the crystal-clear waters that lie feet below.


Although perhaps not as attractive for wildlife as Lunga, the island is still home to hundreds of puffins

After taking in the spectacular sights of Lunga, Staffa and the coast of the Isle of Mull, our boat took us home. Overall, the day was exhausting but tremendously enjoyable and definitely a thing that you must do if travelling to the Isle of Mull. For more details about our boat trip, visit www.staffatours.com.
Thanks so much for reading; I hope you've enjoyed looking at these pictures as much as I enjoyed taking them! 
Florrie x
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Accomplishments.

Summer is well and truly over. In fact, it had ended over a month ago, but only in the past week have I fully accepted that the weeks of going out in just a t-shirt and shorts are finished for the year. To say that my summer was an adventure would be an understatement. Interrailing across Europe, flying out of the continent for the first time and getting a place at university... These past three months have been simply unbelievable. As I closed that Mathematics exam paper for the last time on 24th June 2016, I had little idea that my summer would be the whirlwind that it was. One week on, and I had flown to the Netherlands for the beginning of eighteen days of walking 30,000 steps a day, train journeys and simply incredible sights. Four weeks on, and I had flown to New York City for, undoubtedly, my greatest holiday. Five weeks on, and I had flown inter-continent to the Sun State of Florida. Seven weeks on, and I had received my A-Level results, which I was fortunately absolute...
Post a Comment
Read more

Interview with ‘Sick’ scriptwriter and performer Shey Hargreaves

From hunting down a patient’s lost teeth to witnessing someone turn down potentially life-saving treatment, scriptwriter Shey Hargeaves’ experience of working for the NHS was eye-opening to say the least. Reflecting on her time in a hospital, Shey shares tales of resilience and humour in her hour-long show Sick . “It’s scary!” Shey exclaims as I ask what it has been like leading a one-woman show for the first time. “You're totally on your own out there. But, it's quite nice because you're in control. That means you can play off the audience more. I think that makes for quite a warm, responsive kind of show.” The stories behind Sick are authentic accounts from the four-year period Shey spent within the NHS. Having completed a Master’s in Scriptwriting at the University of East Anglia, Shey was looking to find work when she came across a receptionist position for an Emergency Medical Assessment Unit in 2013. “If I had to be in a reasonably low-paid job and pay t...
Post a Comment
Read more

Interrail 2016: LAKE BLED

Our longest journey by far turned out to be well worth the pain. Although it was nine hours long and we waited for the wrong bus in Bled for over an hour, we had a Harry Potter compartment and we arrived at our destination- Lake Bled, Slovenia. What a place. We lobbed our bags into the lockers at our hostel and immediately went on the hunt for a restaurant to eat at (nine hours of travelling can certainly work up an appetite). Pizzeria Rustica served us enormous pizzas and also some pizza-burgers, which are basically burgers with pizza dough for bread. According to my friends, pizza-burgers are something that should be brought to our hometown.  As it was relatively late by the time we had finished, we only had time to walk to the lake itself before getting to bed. On arrival, we had been asked by the hostel whether we were there more for the night life or nature. Considering the fact that we were deprived of at least 20 hours sleep, we went for nature, rejecting ...
Post a Comment
Read more