I think this was technically day 3 since we left the U.S. on Tuesday and arrived in Scotland on Wednesday, so we’ll go with that.

Today was such a cool day! We took a day trip to Glensanda Quarry.

I know what you’re thinking…a quarry? But have you ever seen an explosion at a quarry? You should. And it’s fascinating to hear about all the different processes rock goes through before it ends up as concrete – so much work!

Also, I look fabulous in neon orange and a hard hat. Proof below.

We had to take a boat from Oban (we were actually a couple miles outside Oban) to Glensanda, which is how a lot of the workers get to the quarry. I was amazed at the positive attitude everyone had here – it seems like most Americans absolutely hate their jobs, but these men and women (yes, women in a very stereotypically-male job, woohoo!) went on and on about how much they love it here. I was impressed.

Luckily for us there was a blast scheduled that morning, so we made our way to the top of the quarry – it’s much higher than it looks – and waited for the explosion!

I know explosions and dynamite are scary and dangerous, but I was really impressed with how much precaution, scheduling, and warnings they provided before the explosion went off. Everybody was on their walkie-talkie, there was a five-minute siren, and a drone was flying overhead.

After the blast and a little more touring of the quarry it was time for lunch. I think I would be a super happy employee if I worked somewhere that offered such good food in their canteen (canteen = cafeteria). We had soup (which was welcomed since it was chilly and rainy), chicken wings, salad, and tons of other options. They even had a basket of candy bars that gave me the chance to eat my first Mars bar!

After lunch we traveled back up the quarry to this spot. I could’ve stood here forever looking out over the water and the hills.

Rocks were pouring out of the tunnel in the pic above (tunnel is not the right word, but it was better than referring to it as a “thingy,” right?), and it was kind of a relaxing sound. Gravity pulls the larger rocks down so that everything gets somewhat sorted as it comes out.

The top picture is a fuzzy, long-distance photo of Glensanda Castle. I’m not sure if people can venture inside (we didn’t), but apparently this is a two-story tower from the 15th century. The pic below is a better view. It’s one of the first things visible when getting off the boat at Glensanda.

After our quarry visit, we were invited to the home of one of the Scots who lived near the beach. It was funny to walk through a cow pasture to get down to the beach and then freeze there in June. Two of our American kids jumped right into the water. I did not. 

This beach is a little different than our Carolina beaches and as you can see from the sky, this was also a brief reprieve from the rain. 

As we were leaving the house I got so excited because I love sheep, and there are sheep EVERYWHERE in Scotland. This little guy stared me down as I walked by, but it’s one of my favorite pictures!

Stay tuned for some food!