(Inverness , Scotland) Alarm. Awake. 7a. Tired. Packing up my gear. Backpacking to the North today. Off to the train station. It’s a bit cold again. Time to find breakfast. Coffee and a muffin. Now to find the correct platform for our train. hmm. The 8:33a to Inverness is on time. No platform has been allocated yet. 8:10a. I’m sure that I look quite American at the moment. I’m wearing my massive pack. And shuffling through various tickets and maps. I’ve seen at least five other backpackers this morning.

Time for a bit of geography review. Edinburgh (Capital) is on the east coast of Scoland. Twenty miles from the sea. Inveness is the northern most city in Scotland. A city in the heart of the highlands. Further north yet, are a few small towns and Isles. Fort William is near the west coast. It lies at the base of Ben Nevis. The highest point in Britain. Malliag is a sea port on the far west coast. Glasgow is in the south of Scotland. It is the largest city. Know for it’s art and culture.

8:23a. They still haven’t announced a platform. ScotRail. There are 19 different platforms in the station. Overhead displays for each with trains going all over Britain. Getting a bit concerned. Tickets in hand. Platform 16! Through the turnstile. Onto the platform. In the train. Kinda jogged. Stuff our packs in the luggage racks. Find a Seat. Rest. OMG! They just announced that this train is leaving for Aberdeen at 8:29a! It’s 8:27a. Wrong train. Asked the English woman next to me for verification. Ahh! Grab our gear. Off the train. Tiffany’s pack got snagged for a bit. Press the button. Doors open. Off! Train pulled away 60 seconds later. Now to find the correct train. 5 minutes. Done. It was further up on platform 16. They split a train. Resulting in two trains on the same platform. Tricky. Stowed the luggage. Found two seats. Tiffany can’t stop laughing. I imagine the Scots on the other train also had quite a chuckle over our situation. As we literally stumbled off the train. Everything is right. Train is great. BritRail pass was well worth the buy. A train across Scotland into the highlands. Mountains/Hills are everywhere. We are sitting backwards. The lady in front of us is a writer for the daily record. Very interesting. I purchased a soda off the food trolley. One and fifty pounds. Absolutely gorgeous. Alot of Farmers and sheep on the hills. Next stop Inverness. We arrive. Train station is bigger than I expected. On the road. Hotel is a few blocks down. Early check-in. Awesome. Food? Leakey’s BookShop and Cafe. Perfect! I just ordered a coffee and a tuna/spice on bread. Tiffany ordered a cheese and tomato toastie. 1:11p. This is the largest secondhand bookshop in Scotland. Really not that big. Multiple stories of course. Super old maps. Books. Paintings. Off to explore the city. Up streets. Down alleys. Lovely little place. All sorts of shops. At the bus station inquiring about tickets to Fort William tomorrow afternoon. A quick walk by the River Ness. And back to the hotel for an afternoon walking break. Time for more exploring. It’s getting cold. Time for our third meal. A European American restaurant. hehe. Cheese Burgers for both of us. Done with food. Stop by a small shop for water and a candy bar. Aero Bar. Popular over here. Back to hotel. Organize my gear for tomorrow. Bed.