"Stirling... Legacy of William Wallace " a Stirling Travel Page by muse_chik

Going to Stirling marked, for us, the first time we were truly 'alone' in Scotland. Having flown into Edinburgh and spending our first 5 days with Brian in Aberdeen and Arbroath, when we boarded the bus for Stirling from Dundee Station, I was full of worry and trepidation as to everything that could possibly go wrong. "What if we get lost?" "Will I be able to find the connecting busses?" "What if I miss the stop?" "Where is the hostel from the bus station?" Needless to say, the bus ride, though beautiful, was very angst-ridden.

We arrived in Stirling no worse for the wear, though as suspected, I had not a clue where to even begin looking for the hostel. Given that we were carrying our lives in two huge backpacks strapped across our backs, I did what any 19 year old American girl would do- I hailed a cab. Thankfully for us, the cabbie knew exactly where to take us. Certainly glad we decided to take the cab- would have been quite the hike uphill with our packs!

Our arrival in Stirling also marked our first experience with the Scottish Youth Hostel Association. I had booked all of our accomadations way in advance- and thankfully, everything was ready and waiting for us when we arrived.

Also, for the first time since arriving in Scotland, we were surrounded by fellow tourists/backpackers. It was nice to be surrounded by people who could give us tips and pointers, but it was also somewhat disapointing to not be able to find 'locals' with whom to sit around and talk.

One of the draws for coming to Stirling, for me, was to take a look at the Stirling University campus, as I had been planning on spending a semester abroad there. Our hostel-mates informed us that the campus was very far from the city centre, and that the only practical way of getting there was by bus. That put a bit of a damper on our plans...

Nevertheless, we awoke early in the morning to grab a cup of coffee and The Beantree, and make our way to the tourist information center. Once there, we planned our day, beginning with a visit to Stirling castle.

Though I am not a big fan of castles, I had an amazing time at Stirling Castle. The guides were super friendly and informative, and we spent hours just wandering around, taking goofy photos whenever the opportunity presented itself. From there, we wandered down the hill a ways to Argyll's Lodging, and spent a few minutes strolling through the old home.

After some deliberation, we decided that we would take a ride on the bright red, 'Stirling City Tour Bus', and am very glad we did! We zipped around historical points in Stirling, and I got to get my glimpse of Stirling University.

We wandered back to our hostel, exhausted but happy, and realized that we had no idea how we were making our way to Loch Lomond. Thus marked another walk down the hill, to the bus station, where we poured over time schedules, still confused, but decided on a time to make it to the bus station the next morning.

I had a blast in Stirling. Wasn't sure that I would- but it was absolutely amazing. I'd definitely return sometime, but probably not for school...