Monday, January 24, 2011

The Strange Animals of Scotland

Wow--I can't believe it's been two weeks since my last confession! To make up for my lapse on a slow-news day, here's a short travelogue about the weird animals of the Scottish Highlands and Islands. (Thanks to M and to my sister Bonnie for letting me raid their vacation photos.)

Let's begin in the tiny seaside village of Plockton, where the BBC's Hamish Macbeth TV series was filmed:


What is most remarkable about Plockton is that there is a dog there that walks himself:


For many years the push-me-pull-ewe was thought to be extinct. But then M spotted this one on the Isle of Skye:


Throughout the Northwest Highlands there are cows that people often mistake for Donald Trump:


See what I mean? (By the way, this is not one of the vacation pics.)


You've probably heard of Loch Ness. Here's a nice picture of it--with a run-down castle that reminds me of the abandoned house where I used to hang out:


As for the fabled Loch Ness Monster, here's proof that there's not just one of them, but THREE:


Finally for your enjoyment, I present a bunch of drowned rats:


I think Robert Burns must have had digital cameras in mind when he wrote, "O wad some Power the giftie gie us / To see oursels as others see us!"

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Great shots! The clouds and flowers are also perfect subject to take pictures

digital SLR cameras said...

birds and butterflies are also ideal subject to take pictures outdoor

Anonymous said...

Great pictures & beautiful country, Buddy ! Scots sure do love their dogs:
“Without the shepherd's dog, the whole of the open mountainous land in Scotland would not be worth a sixpence.” James Hogg

“I must have done something right because they gave me a grant to the Royal Scottish Academy Of Music And Drama in 1983. But I hated all that stuff they taught me…and I went off and formed a small experimental, often political, theatre company called Rain Dog to unlearn it.”
Robert Carlyle (Hamish)(Very cool actor!)

Anonymous said...

Tell M on his next visit to Scotland to visit the island of Texel of the coast on the Netherlands. There the Texel sheep originated - a tough breed to survive on an island in the North Sea. Dave

Anonymous said...

Oh, Buddy, I'm so glad that you quoted Robert Burns. I've often thought of that but couldn't quite recall the entire couplet(?)

Thanks!

Love, Grandma