TheHairyCoo.com

 While cruising about Stirling... trying to follow Tim through roundabouts with 5 and 6 lanes in search of the William Wallace (think Braveheart) monument... 

We spotted this tour bus,

which immediately cracked us up.

Why?

Just that morning, at the café/tourist trap where we stopped to eat our last authentic Scottish breakfast - Have you ever had baked beans for breakfast? - we met this guy...

See the resemblance?

If you've ever heard of Hamish before, this may be why.

According to Wikipedia:

The breed was developed in the Scottish Highlands and Western Isles of Scotland. Breeding stock has been exported to the rest of the world, especially Australia and North America, since the early 20th Century. The breed was developed from two sets of stock, one originally black, and the other reddish. Highlands are known as a hardy breed due to the rugged nature of their native Scottish Highlands, with high rainfall and very strong winds. Highland cattle have been successfully established in many temperate countries and indeed in countries where winters are substantially colder than Scotland's such as in central Europe and Canada. Their hair gives protection during the cold winters and their skill in looking for food allows them to survive in steep mountain areas. They both graze and browse and eat plants which many other cattle avoid.

However, as adorable as Hamish may be... I don't think he holds a candle to these little cuties, so patiently waiting for that traditional Scottish breakfast, do you?

We did manage to see those sites we set out to see while in Stirling, even if only from a distance due to the fact that we still had some miles to cover and our vans were already almost late!

William Wallace Monument

Stirling Bridge (sort of... or so I'm told)

Stirling Castle