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Scotland Mountains... where isolation turns fun

Author: MO Othman
by MO Othman
Posted: Jun 03, 2020

The Neverland Island where Peter Pan and the Lost Boys live is not a real island. It is found only in the imagination of the famous Scottish writer James Matthew Barry (GM Barry). But that "lost" island was inspired by Scotland's national writer from a real one called "Eilean Shona". GM Barry is said to have spent a family vacation in the early twentieth century and wrote Peter Pan's novel from there.

This island is located in the mountains of Scotland, which is known as the "Highlands" in the inland hybrid region or "Liner Hyperdes" and can only be reached by a small boat that takes you on a 10-minute trip. It is approximately 4 hours from Glasgow International Airport. But there, when you get to the island, there are no cars, no bikes, no transportation... other than the feet.

This remote island has a fascinating charm, and being alone increases its charm. GM Barry described it in a letter he wrote from there to Cynthia, who was his secretary and keeper of secrets, as "a wild, rocky, romantic island... and the refuge on its wild shores is almost breathtaking...".

Indeed, the island of Ilan Shona is breathtaking. Its nature is breathtaking with its waterfalls, tall trees and thick forests. And the wildlife is charming. There, as you stroll, you encounter a deer, squirrel, or puffin bird, marked by its orange beak, which only lives in the mountains of Scotland. An island can be explored within a day on foot. Its area is not more than 5 square kilometers.

But that island is not for all adventurers. There are no restaurants in it, no cafes, no museums, or even shops for shopping. Rather, beautiful and traditional little huts with no internet access, not even cellphone signals. Its permanent population... only two. A woman and her husband wanted to live in isolation and get away from the world. They have a boat that they cross to the opposite side once a week to shop and return loaded with mortar transport from the small port to their hut for a half hour walk. Sometimes they use a small four-wheel-drive vehicle to transport heavy goods, and they move around with caution in small land lanes. In the winter, they say they have to buy a mortar that lasts for weeks. Because stormy and rainy weather means that they remain "stuck" on the island, unable to cross the boat for long weeks.

The entire island is owned by one family, which is Dufourou-Branson since 1995. It rents the small cottages on the island for visitors and tourists. To it, tourists come loaded with the goods that they will need throughout their stay.

But if you are not a fan of isolation and introvertedness, in the mountains of Scotland are picturesque inhabited islands that still preserve their virgin nature.

Not far from Ilan Shona, a large island called Isle of Mull is home to nearly 3,000 people, and its largest city is Tobermory.

From the sea when you reach it on the large ship that transports visitors to it with their cars, you see a row of colorful huts behind the harbor. These beautiful shacks, which look like an oil painting, make up the largest part of the city and its center. Here you will find hotels and restaurants serving fresh seafood, and cafes that offer evening parties with singles all night hours.

Nature on the picturesque island of Mal also. Once away from the huts, you begin to discover the nature of the wild mountains of Scotland. As you drive, you may have to stop to allow long-haired Scottish cows, or a flock of sheep, to cross. Ponds are found amongst tall green mountains every few meters. And scattered huts distributed on the highlands.

The nearby Isle of Skye is also similar to an island of Mal in terms of size, nature and facilities.

But for those looking for a "half-retreat", the Harris & Lewis islands, which are located in the group of overseas "external" islands, or the "Outer Hebrides" may be the ideal destination. The two adjacent islands extend over an area of??more than two thousand square kilometers with a population of up to 21 thousand, consisting of a major city is Stornoway in Lewis, where most of the population is concentrated, and a smaller one about two hours away from the main city is Tarbet in Harris, where the port that reaches The machinery of the ships from the interior of the mountains of Scotland. All that remains are virgin spaces of nature, mountains, rivers, beaches and cozy cozy huts.

Reaching this remote island, which is about 8 hours drive from Glasgow airport, and about two hours by boat, has become easier since the late nineties when the government of Scotland transformed Stornway Military Airport into an airport that receives commercial flights from major Scottish cities such as Glasgow, Edinburgh and Inverness, among others.

Here you can rent a traditional cottage in the remote areas of the island, especially in Harrisalt, about an hour and a half hour drive from the main city of Stornoway. And in Harris, you enjoy relaxing and beautiful nature. Not far away are a number of cafes and restaurants serving traditional dishes and fresh seafood. Also on the island there is an open kiosk with pre-prepared frozen foods that you can buy and leave the money in the "Trust Fund". Here, no seller sells you and takes you money. Only food and box with Honesty box written with directions for each meal. The name of the kiosk «Croft 36» finds fresh bread next to the main meals prepared.

Because of the island's location in the far northwest of Britain, close to Norway, the weather on the island rains a lot of times, which increases its romance.

There is also a lot of history and ancient ruins on this island, perhaps the most famous of which is known as "Callanish Stones", a group of gigantic rocks that are 5 thousand years old, some of which were built in a circular shape and in the middle what looks like proximity, and others close to it are lined up behind and opposite each other. Historians have different analyzes of its meaning, but it certainly captures everyone who sees it. Some believed that it was constructed with the intention of worship, while others said it was a lunar observatory observatory dating back to prehistoric times. In folk tales, residents tell the story that the giants are turned into rocks for refusing to convert to Christianity. In the seventeenth century, the inhabitants of Louis Island used to call these rocks "phantom men."

Not far from the location of these rocks, you find the village of Garenin, with a population of 80 people, with old traditional houses known as the "Black House" built more than 150 years ago, whose roofs are made of straw and were the traditional houses scattered in the mountains of Scotland. And the part of the village where these houses are located is called Blackhouse Village. Nine of them were recently refurbished and opened to visitors, one of which turned into a museum and another was a small café. These traditional houses were inhabited until 1974, and not only people lived in those houses, but also livestock owned by those who lived in the home. They shared the same entrance, but lived in different parts of it.

And on this island more than the beauty of nature and being far from civil. It is the center of the Gaelic language or Gallic language spoken by the inhabitants of the mountains of Scotland. All the writings on the streets, in the shops and restaurants can be found in Gaelic first, then in English. Although all regions and islands of the "Heinlands" depend mainly of Gaelic, they are usually not inhabited by the population, except in Harris and Lewis Islands. Here you are walking on the streets, or you visit shops you hear residents speak about.

Although it is usually the language of the elderly, many young people and children have recently started to speak it before English and consider it their mother tongue; This is because of the reforms introduced by the SNP government since it came to power in 2007.

On this conservative island full of ancient churches, the Gaelic language is also heard in the churches. It plays a major role in preserving that old language and incites its use in the liturgy, although the number of pilgrims is usually restricted to the elderly, while the new generation prefers the English language.

Not far from the port of Stornoway, you find a small white mosque, built between two churches only two years ago, to become the first and only mosque in all the islands of West Scotland, and serves a Muslim community of no more than seventy people. Although there are few Muslims in Harris and Louis, they have lived there for nearly seventy years. Initially, merchants arrived from Pakistan after the Second World War. Some of them settled and opened stores that did not exist on the island. Muslims gathered in each other's homes to pray on holidays and events. Today, although children have left the island to the interior and major cities to enroll in universities and seek better job opportunities, the number of Muslims on the island still reaches about 60 people. But their makeup changed. Today, the vast majority of the Syrian refugees who were allowed to settle on the island a few years ago. About 8 Syrian families moved to the island, with their children and women.

Although the island's Scottish residents are committed Christians, they welcomed refugees as well as Muslims seventy years ago. When the Muslim community sought to build a mosque, the majority of the population did not oppose it, but some participated in financing campaigns. Today, the Stornoway Mosque stands alone in the West Scotland Islands.

About the Author

This article was written by the travel and tourism expert and owner of this site: https://tripprivacy.com

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Author: MO Othman

MO Othman

Member since: May 31, 2020
Published articles: 1

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