Along with the many other travels that Covid eliminated, there was one particular trip that I was especially disappointed over. Jacob and I tried to travel as much as we could during our early years of marriage, despite the limited resources and time off that goes along with being a new hire fresh out of college. We even took a babymoon while I was 5 months pregnant, knowing it may be our last chance to travel as a couple for a while. After Brenna was born, we continued to travel as often as we could, but having a baby on board completely changed not only the way we vacationed but also the destinations that we travelled to. Some of our bucket-list destinations got put on the back burner for more kid friendly options like beach vacations and Disney World. As she grew, so did her sense of adventure and love of travel, which was a joy for me to see except for one minor detail. She loved to travel so much that the idea that we would leave her behind on any trip was a devastating thought to her! And so, its been 13 years since Jacob and I had a "trip" for ourselves.
But this year was gonna be the year that we snuck away! It just so happened that Outdoor Education Week was scheduled for the same week in May as our anniversary. Brenna would be off camping on a small island off the western coast of Scotland. Jacob scheduled the time-off and I booked us a great 3-day getaway at the Trump Turnberry, also on the western coast of the Scotland, but alas, Covid struck and the pandemic destroyed our plans.
We did get some consolation a few months later after Covid restrictions eased a bit. We enjoyed a rare night out. Brenna was spending the night at a friends house one weekend and we decided to take the opportunity to stay at the Fingal. We combined two of our favorite things: ships (albeit, not a cruise) and food!
The Fingal was originally commissioned by the Northern Lighthouse Board in 1963 with the purpose of ferrying lighthouse keepers, essential supplies, and maintenance staff to lighthouses, as well as undertaking repairs to navigational aids throughout the West Coast and the North of Scotland. Fingal retired from lighthouse service in 2000. After serving in several different capacities in the following years, The Royal Yacht Britannia Trust (caretakers of the Royal Yacht) acquired the ship in 2014. With much planning and design work the ship undertook a £5m conversion over more than two years that transformed it into a luxury floating hotel with each of the 23 cabins onboard the Fingal named after one of the lighthouses in its previous service.
We took in everything the Fingal had to offer. We arrived early in the day to enjoy High Tea in the Lighthouse Restaurant, the first of our three meals onboard. It was Jacob's first High Tea experience and we over indulged in the sweet and savory treats. After tea we were checked-in and escorted through the glass encased engine room to our home for the night. We stayed in the Rubha Nan Gall suite. There was a sweet treat from the hotel waiting for us in celebration of our anniversary. We unpacked our bag and settled in. Since we knew we would be partaking in the traditional afternoon tea, we booked a late night dinner reservation which allowed me the time to take a swim in the suite's huge soaking tub. I tried everything in the bath amenities bar that was provided including the fire-whiskey bath gel. I'm not sure why anyone would want to bath in whiskey, but if that's your thing this is the stuff for you. It (and by consequence me) smelled like the inside of a Scotch bottle. I quickly followed that up with a Rhubard bath scent that balanced out the antiseptic aroma.
For dinner that night we took all the time we wanted since there was no need (aka Brenna) to rush. The next morning we were back at the Lighthouse for a lovely breakfast before packing up and disembarking. It was a really short, fun getaway and while we may have only been a few short miles from home, it felt like a world away. It was certainly a unique experience and something I know we will look back on fondly in years to come.
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