My best friend and I visited Scotland three years ago, and right now I'm planning a visit there with my mother -- so now I have comments on your itinerary.

April 05 (Mon): arrive 6:30 AM - drive-by tourism: Stonehenge, Longleat perhaps. Finish in Glastonbury.
April 06 (Tue): Bath and environs; drive north

There is a great Cornish pasty place in Bath. Standing in front of the entrance to the baths, face the church. Off to your left, about 11'oclock, a block or so in, just follow your nose. Mmmmm.

The baths are incredible.

We went to Evensong at the cathedral in Wells, which was really, really cool.

April 07 (Wed): leisurely northern drive. Chatsworth, Arthuret, Carlisle, Gretna Green, end in, uhm... somewhere in Dumfries. Don't have my notes.
April 08 (Thu): Whitthorn and such; up to Glasgow
April 09 (Fri): Glasgow--up to Oban
April 10 (Sat): Isle of Mull
April 11 (Sun): Ft. Wm., Loch Ness

You really should try to go to Skye. Skye is where God goes on vacation. It's the most beautiful place ever. Whereas Oban and Ft. William are much of a muchness (in retrospect I have a hard time remembering which was which).

At Loch Ness, visit the big, incredibly cheesy Loch Ness Experience (west side of the Loch). The little restaurant off to one side has good sandwiches.

April 12 (Mon): Inverness (Culloden, etc.)

Inverness, on the other hand, is the Baltimore of Scotland. Or maybe the Trenton.

What's cool in Inverness: Culloden, which you can see, including the film, in less than an hour; and Cawdor Castle, which is absolutely not to be missed. By the time we were done, we were both in love with the late Earl, who wrote the guidebook and had an absolutely snarky sense of humor.

April 13 (Tue): Perth, St. Andrews

OOO, St. Rule's (sp?) tower. Worth it for the view, but one of the most nervous-making climbs we did, and we climbed everything that would stand still to be climbed, plus some stuff. You go from narrow metal spiral stairs to narrow worn-out stone spiral stairs, a rope handrail, just wide enough for one, which means you end up clutching the central post when people pass you going down.

April 14 (Wed): Edinburgh

My birthday! You should go have a drink for me in this pub: http://www.ensignewart.demon.co.uk/ensign/ Good cider, good shepherd's pie, and very silly signs.

While you're in Edinburgh, if you get a chance, go to Linlithgow Palace -- so very, very beautiful. Just ruined enough that you can use your imagine, just intact enough that you can climb everywhere.

Anyway, I'm nothing if not opinionated! Have a great trip.

(claps hands) Wonderful! Someone in the know.

> There is a great Cornish pasty place in Bath.
> The baths are incredible.

Indeed! This will be my 3rd visit to them, my husband's first. Didn't know about the pasty place. Never got out of the Pump Room without being pumped full of tea.

>We went to Evensong at the cathedral in Wells, >which was really, really cool.

(sighs) Would like to finally see Wells and cathedral from closer than 5 miles away. Passed it on a bus once. Saw it from the Tor once.

>You really should try to go to Skye. Skye is >where God goes on vacation. It's the most >beautiful place ever. Whereas Oban and Ft. >William are much of a muchness (in retrospect I >have a hard time remembering which was which).

Good to know. (thinks about scrambling the schedule) We weren't planning on *doing* Oban, it's just in the way on the way to Mull. Same-same Ft. Wm-- it's in the way on the way to Loch Ness. But it might help us adjust accordingly.

>Inverness, on the other hand, is the Baltimore of >Scotland. Or maybe the Trenton.

I'd have to ask someone what Baltimore and Trenton are like. :) Does that mean, "don't bother?"

>>April 14 (Wed): Edinburgh

>My birthday!

Mine is on the 10th. :)

My experience with Inverness was like this: We leave St. Andrews in the middle of the day and drive cross country to Inverness, where we arrive at the hostel just in time to find nowhere left serving food except the chinese deli across from the Victorian "castle." Bad chinese. Then we go to a pub where the musicians proceed to mangle old Elvis tunes. Then some drunk Finns started heckling them, and the musicians retorted by playing Monty Python's "Finland Finland Finland." Finally the musicians and the Finns got together to slaughter "Danny Boy." It was disturbing.

The next morning we get up and start exploring Inverness. There is a decent art supply store and the biggest used bookstore in Scotland, which is located in a renovated church (that was actually pretty cool). But then we looked and looked and couldn't find anything much to do. There was no there, there, just a big industrial city. So we lit out and did Culloden and Cawdor, and then headed south around Loch Ness.