A trip of long days, special gifts
Scotland is famous for its "highlands and islands," and Merry Meloy was awe-struck by the terrain even before her plane landed in Glasgow.
"It was just beautiful flying in," said Meloy, pastor of Saint Andrews United Presbyterian Church on East Jefferson Street.
"I was looking down on the tops of these very green mountains and there were rivers of mist where all the lochs are."
She and her sister, Meg Meloy of State College, toured Scotland from June 22 to July 2.
"My sister called me and said, 'I want to get away,'" Merry Meloy said. "She offered me a plane ticket to come along, which was wonderful."
Meloy visited Scotland more than 20 years ago during a study abroad program at Penn State University, but had not been back since.
Since Saint Andrews is known for its Scottish heritage, Meloy said she considered the trip "part vacation, part study leave."
The sisters rented a car after arriving in Glasgow and spent the day traveling to the small port town of Oban.Meloy discovered that driving the rented car on the rural, single-lane roads took plenty of concentration. Signs warned of livestock running onto streets and bridges, and large vehicles shared the road with small cars."There were pull-off areas and whoever was bigger or arrived at a certain spot first had the right of way," she said.Meloy used the public bus at other times, which she said was not only a source of transportation but also a delivery system between neighboring villages."The bus stopped at one village and someone loaded up some food and a pile of newspapers," she said. "At the next village, people picked up their newspapers and what looked like their dinner."The day after arriving, Meloy rode a ferry to the Isle of Iona to visit the Iona Abbey. Built in 563 by St. Columba, the abbey was important to the spread of Christianity in Scotland."I think that when you're surrounded by that history, it's a wonderful reminder that we are part of a much larger story," she said.
Visitors at Iona Abbey can follow along the medieval cobblestone path to a cemetery, Meloy said. Many early Scottish kings are buried there, including Duncan, the king killed by Macbeth.Meloy said the church also has modern connections, since villagers still use the abbey for retreats and workshops."You really had the sense that you were standing on sacred soil," she said. "You had this incredibly rich history but also a living community faith that was still on the site. That was really powerful."The Meloys returned to the mainland and spent the night near Stirling before visiting Edinburgh the next day.The capital city of Scotland, Edinburgh attracts more than one million visitors each year, making it the second most popular United Kingdom tourist destination after London, according to travel literature.The presence of police at the Edinburgh train station initially worried Meloy, but she soon discovered the reason."I thought, 'Either somebody very important is about to arrive or the terror alert is at code red,'" she said. "The queen of England was just about to arrive and I was amazed."Meloy said the entire scene was much more low-key than it would have been in America."I got some pictures and there were some people waiting with flowers," she said. "She just hopped into her car and that was it."
The Meloys next headed east to a small village to witness the annual Highland Games."The Highlands are very rugged, very open and vast," she said. "You can see why the Scottish people have such a history of valuing freedom."The games have been held since the early 1400s, dating back to the Battle of Bannockburn."It was a huge battle where the English were defeated," Meloy explained. "In gratitude for the role the village's men played in the battle, the games were chartered."Except during war years, the games have been held continuously on the village green where the men supposedly trained for battle."They had competitive highland dancing, footraces, bike races, wrestling, piping contests and all of the individual feats of strength that are so quintessentially Scottish," she said. "It was a window into traditional Scottish culture."After the games, Meloy pressed onward to worship in at least four Presbyterian churches in the town of St. Andrews because of the connection to the Butler church.She and her sister also visited the town's oldest church, the Church of the Holy Trinity.As they wandered through the medieval town of St. Andrews, the sisters came upon St. Andrews University.The gates were closed due to an alumni gathering, but a staff member invited them inside to watch the concert put on by the town high school's bagpipe band."They were all in kilts and they marched out onto a square that was part of the campus," Meloy said. "They did some different formations while they were playing, and it was great."
Then weather began to turn cold and foggy, so Meloy decided to venture north in search of better conditions.She and her sister traveled spontaneously after the first few days of the trip, but never had trouble finding accommodations."We stayed in everything from a working sheep farm to someone's home," said Meloy, who worked from guidebooks and tourism information sites. "You didn't always get your first choice but it was pretty easy."Their early summer trip was just before the high season for tourism, so there were few other travelers."There were a lot of British folks but not as many internationals," Meloy said. "The people we talked to said they get more international tourism later in the summer."However, Meloy said their timing was perfect for sightseeing and exploring."Scotland is very far north and I think the sun went down around 10 o'clock," she said. "It made for a really long touring day, which is great in the summer, but people said it started getting dark at 3 in the afternoon during the winter."Possibly because of this, Meloy noticed that people seemed to appreciate simply being outdoors."There were a lot of families having picnics and there were a lot of people out walking in the evenings," she said. "People really seemed to make the most of the weather."Scotland is easy to navigate, accommodations are plentiful and there is no language barrier for Americans, said Carol Vavro, co-owner of the Travel Centre in Butler."Many people like to go over there and just drive themselves around," she said. "It's not a country where you feel like you have to have a lot of guidance."
While Meloy says she brought back "too many books" for herself, she and her sister also purchased a meaningful memento for their mother at an antique shop."We brought back a silver pin that was made in Edinburgh in the 1800s," she said. "It has a ship on it, which is a symbol for the church, since my mother is a retired minister."In addition to that souvenir, Meloy said the trip was full of extraordinary moments."Whether it was getting to have a conversation with someone or seeing a spectacular sunset or happening onto the pipe band, the whole trip was peppered with these little unexpected gifts," Meloy said.Meloy will share memories of her trip during the church's annual Scottish service, which celebrates the heritage of Saint Andrews Church.Saint Andrews has done the service for more than 40 years, said Meloy, who has been pastor there for four."I'll try to open some windows into the story of Christianity in Scotland," she said. "I hope to share a few pictures from the 'family album' of our shared story as Christians."
<B>WHAT: </B>Scottish service<B>WHEN: </B>10:30 a.m. Oct. 25<B>WHERE: </B>Saint Andrews United Presbyterian Church, 201 E. Jefferson St.<B>INFO: </B>Service to celebrate the church's Scottish heritage, followed by luncheon with traditional Scottish fare
