More Skye and great people! (Tuesday, Sept. 15)

On our second day on the Isle of Skye, we awoke tired because of staying up too late last night working on pictures and this blog! I was grumpy and felt terrible. But we didn't want to just blow a whole day off, so we gathered our things after breakfast and headed toward Broadford.

Skye scene on a misty morning.

First stop was an outdoor clothing shop called Magpie's, where we had hoped to pick up a few extra items we needed (along with some pants I really really hoped to find). Magpie's turned out to be more focused on gift items than on outdoor clothing. They had only two pair of women's pants, neither in my size. 

Just outside of Magpie's we saw an older lady walking her Westie. She was coming down the sidewalk toward us and the dog was wagging its little tail and wanting to say hello. Smoky greeted the dog first while I talked with the lady. She said she was surprised at the dog approaching us because she was usually shy around strangers. She commented that we must love dogs and that her dog recognized that in us. We talked about our trip so far. The conversation was relaxed and pleasant, just the way old friends would be with each other. Before we said goodbye, the little dog came up to me and insisted on a greeting, too. This whole interaction cheered us both up.

Back in the car, Smoky and I talked a little about what we wanted to do next and had just about decided to drive northwest to the faery glen, which we missed yesterday. About that time, the sun popped out (it had been raining softly and cloudy all morning), so we headed southwest toward Elgol, a small village at the end of a piece of the island with a great view of the Cuillin Mountains.

Interesting Celtic cross in Cill Chriosd cemetery.

Just as we've found in other villages, once we turned off the main road through Broadford, we were in the country. Just us, another very narrow one-lane road, some sheep in the fields and on the road, and hills with scattered ponds all around. It is startling how quickly you transition from town to fields in Scotland.

We noticed a ruined church with a very interesting cemetery around it on the right not too far out of Broadford, and since this one had a reasonable parking area, we decided to check it out. The church, called Cill Chriosd or Christ's Church, was constructed sometime around the 16th century, replacing an earlier Medieval church on the same location. This old church had a really nice energy about it. 

Tadej and Valerija, married today!

We enjoyed wandering around the cemetery and church and were about to walk back to the car when several people came up the steps. A young man, dressed nicely, a young woman in a lovely green dress with a bouquet of flowers, and three women, one wearing a suit and the other two dressed like us. I said to Smoky that I bet a wedding was about to take place!

Being curious, I walked back up the steps and looked through the open window. It was a wedding! I caught the eye of the groom and said "Congratulations!" They both smiled and waved. We got in the car and were looking at some of the photos we had taken when the young man came down the steps. He walked to our car and asked if we would mind taking some pictures of them! We would love to.

Tadej and Valerija are from Slovenia, here on holiday and to get married. They found this old church that they liked, and they asked the two ladies they met last night to be their witnesses. And today Smoky photographed them after their wedding. They were delightful young people, and again, our day was brighter for having met them. We exchanged email addresses, wished them well, and promised photos soon.

The wedding party: left to right, two friends from Canada, Valerija, Tadej,
the minister.

The lovely bride Valerija.

The happy groom Tadej.

Sign to Duncan House.

A little further down the road we saw a sign beside the road saying Duncan House, Fine Celtic Jewelry, World Famous Knives. We couldn't resist checking this out. Maybe Smoky could find a knife that he loved, and who can say no to celtic jewelry. The road up to the gallery was lined with lovely large trees, and the old stone building was remarkable.

Smoky's Clan Donnachaidh includes a lot of Duncans, and that made this stop even better. Garth Duncan, artist, greeted us himself. He was born in America but moved to Scotland because of a very strong desire to create items in the old way. His work is remarkable! Even though we could not afford to purchase any, we felt so grateful to have met Duncan and seen his artistry. Visit his website for more about Garth and his work.

One of Garth Duncan's remarkable knives. It has over 30 diamonds in
the handle. Priceless.

Garth Duncan, master goldsmith, in his workshop.

We made it to Elgol, but the Cuillins were still shrouded in clouds, so after exploring the small beach and harbor for a short while, we drove the narrow road back to Broadford. As we passed Cill Chriosd, we noticed that Tadej and Valerija were back, taking more photos of the lovely place where they were married. We waved as we drove by.

You can see how our day was filled with great people!

In Broadford, we stopped at the Cafe Sia for some delicious pizza! Tonight we have promised ourselves an earlier bedtime. Tomorrow is our day with Mitchell, Skye Ghillie, who will be guiding us to places tourists don't normally get. It should be a great day.

--Shann