Täna me eriti ringi ei sõitnud. Plaan oli veeta päev Invernessi linnaga tutvudes. Tegemist on Šoti mägismaa mitteametliku pealinnaga. Wikipedia andmetel on see kõige kiiremini kasvav linn Euroopas. Kõigi Briti saare linnade hulgas on see oma elanike elukvaliteedi poolest esimese viie hulgas. Seega on tegu igati asjaliku väikelinnaga (elanike arv veidi üle 50 tuhande).
Today we didn’t really drive around much. The plan was to spend the day getting to know Inverness. This is the unofficial capital of the Scottish Highlands. According to Wikipedia, it is the fastest growing city in Europe. Among all British Isles cities, it ranks in the top five for quality of life for its residents. So this is quite a substantial small town (population just over 50 thousand).
Jalutasime linnas lihtsalt niisama ringi. Esimene koht, kuhu sisse astusime, oli vanaaegne kaubanduskeskus (Victorean market). Seal oli palju poekesi, kus müüdi igasugust kraami, alates Šoti rahvuslikust riietusest ja lõpetades automudelitega. Meie tegelesime seal peaasjalikult window-shoppinguga.
Edasi jalutasime Invernessi lossi juurde. See on ilus liivakivist ehitis, milles tänapäeval asub kohtumaja.
We just walked around the city. The first place we entered was an old-fashioned shopping center (Victorian Market). There were many small shops selling all sorts of goods, from Scottish national dress to model cars. We mainly engaged in window-shopping there.
Next we walked to Inverness Castle. It’s a beautiful sandstone structure that nowadays houses the courthouse.
Linnas oli uskumatult palju kirikuid, millest enamus asusid kõik üksteise kõrval. Ühes kirikus lõppes just laulatus ja nägime, kuidas noorpaar kirikust välja astus. Pruut oli tavapäraselt valges kleidis, peigmees aga kandis Šoti seelikut.
There were an incredible number of churches in the city, most of which were all next to each other. In one church a wedding had just ended and we saw the newlyweds stepping out of the church. The bride was traditionally in a white dress, but the groom was wearing a Scottish kilt.
Veel oli meile juba eelmistel kordadel linnast läbi sõites silma jäänud pood, mille nimeks oli “Poola delikatessid” (Seda küll poola keeles, aga seda ma ei suuda enam meenutada). Poes oli rohkesti poola toiduaineid (õigemini küll toiduaineid poolakeelsete siltidega, näiteks Knorri kiirsupid).
Linnas oli palju väga ilusaid vanaaegseid maju, aga üldpilti rikkusid moodsad karphooned, mis asusid vanade majadega läbisegi.
We had also noticed on previous drives through the city a shop called “Polish Delicatessen” (in Polish, but I can’t recall it anymore). The shop had plenty of Polish food products (or rather food products with Polish-language labels, such as Knorr instant soups).
The city had many very beautiful old buildings, but the overall picture was marred by modern box-like buildings interspersed with the old houses.
Päeva lõpuks otsustasime üles otsida ka Cullodeni lahinguvälja, millel on oluline roll Šotimaa ajaloos. Selles lahingus (16.apr. 1746) löödi puruks Jakobiitide sõjavägi. Kuna Jakobiite toetasid paljud Šoti klannipealikud, siis peale seda hävitasid Inglased kogu klannisüsteemi. Šotimaa elu muutus peale seda kardinaalselt, osad elanikest kasutasid ära avanenud uued võimalused rikastumiseks hiiglaslikus Briti impeeriumis, teised jäid aga pikaks ajaks taga igatsema “vanu häid aegu”.
Lahinguväljal oli väga hea ekspositsioon, kus sai ülevaate mõlema osapoole sammudest, mis lahinguni viisid. Veel sai vaadata filmi lahingust, mida näidati ruumi kõigile neljale seinale nii, et jäi tunne, nagu oleks ise lahinguväljal viibinud. Alles kõge lõpuks sai ka lahinguväljale tiiru peale teha. Seal oli kaaslaseks audiogiid, kust sai kuulata lahingus osalejate muljeid erinevatest lahinguetappidest. (Tõepoolest muljeid, sest need olid võetud tegelike lahingus osalejate mälestustest).
At the end of the day we decided to also seek out the Culloden battlefield, which plays an important role in Scottish history. In this battle (April 16, 1746) the Jacobite army was crushed. Since the Jacobites were supported by many Scottish clan chiefs, the English afterwards destroyed the entire clan system. Scottish life changed dramatically after this, some inhabitants took advantage of the new opportunities for enrichment in the vast British Empire, while others were left for a long time longing for the “good old days”.
At the battlefield there was a very good exhibition where you could get an overview of both sides’ steps that led to the battle. You could also watch a film about the battle that was shown on all four walls of the room, so that it felt like you were on the battlefield yourself. Only at the very end could you take a tour of the battlefield itself. There was an audio guide as a companion, from which you could hear the impressions of battle participants from different stages of the battle. (Truly impressions, because they were taken from the memoirs of actual battle participants).
Veel oli huvitav see, et piletit ostes küsis töötaja meilt meie päritolukohta. Kui ta kuulis, et oleme Eestist, käis ta korra ära ja tõi meile näha postkaardi, mille ta kõrvalkassas töötav kolleeg oli talle Tartust saatnud.
Sellega on meie reisi teine etapp läbi. Homme pakime oma asjad kokku ja asume teele saarestikku läänerannikul.
Also interesting was that when buying tickets, the employee asked us about our place of origin. When she heard that we were from Estonia, she went away for a moment and brought us a postcard that her colleague working at the next cash register had sent her from Tartu.
With this, the second stage of our journey is complete. Tomorrow we’ll pack our things and set out on the road to the archipelago on the west coast.
