This is a typical sight at the Manila airport every Christmas. Seven hundred cranky passengers multiplied by an average of three bags per person equals mad rush for luggage carts.

I have several favorite kinds of snow, two of which appeared magically last night.

It started with the Pixie Dust. This fine sparkly powder is like lightly sprinkled caster sugar on the earth and crunches underfoot. The world shimmers at night. When I woke up this morning, it was Frosting. Everything is covered with a soft smooth layer of white fluffy snow. It’s the stuff that transform Christmas scenes from hectic to serene.

My five-year old point and shoot can’t do the vision justice.

And what’s that? Animal tracks! What could it be? A bunny?

Playing with tilt-shift Photoshopping.

Mini Edinburgh (where the wee folk live)

Mini Cemetary at Stirling (for minor lords)

Mini Sheep (for cotton balls)

Highlights of the Scotland Trip:

1. The Castles
The Scottish castles are not the romantic castles of Germany, for sure. Though they’re mostly in ruins, they have their own sense of timelessness. It helps that the castle grounds are set against the backdrop of countryside that itself hasn’t changed for centuries.

Castle Blackness
Shaped like a ship, the castle was fondly called the ship that the English could never sink.

Edzell Castle
Edzell is rather off the beaten track for a grand tour of Scotland. K lived in the area some years ago, but at that time, the castle was under major renovation and closed to the public. It stood outside the town at the end of a dirt road. Its best feature was the beautiful walled garden.

Linlithgow Castle
The birthplace of Mary Queen of Scots. Huge floorplan. I’d love to have lived here even as the steward. The challenge of managing that big of a place makes me twitchy.

Urquhart Castle
The 270 degree view of the loch is beautiful!

Dunnottar Castle
The land bridge to the castle eroded over the centuries, so tourists must walk hundreds of steps down and up to reach it.

Glamis Castle
The furnishings in the rooms were beautiful. I’ve decided to revive the tradition of extra large portraits as wall art at home. No photography allowed inside, though I did purchase a couple of postcards!

2. Mary King’s Close, Edinburgh
This tour was wickedly fun. The guide takes you through the underground close, telling stories of real residents back in the 16th-17th century and during the plague.

3. Highland Cows
Furry cows are so cute!

4. The Countryside
Cows, sheep and hay everywhere!

Next time, skip:

1. Dinner at The Dungeon Restaurant, Dalhousie Castle
Dinner was a warm potato and truffle salad as a starter, monkfish with a Dijon Bearnaise sauce for the entree, and tonka bean creme brulee for dessert. The food was at the same quality as you’d find in a nice restaurant. The service, on the other hand, was too casual for the hefty price tag. For £45 a person, one would expect that at the very least the plates be cleared with minimal fuss. Disappointing.

2. The “Scottish Breakfast”
Breakfast consists of a bowl of cereal, fried egg, Ayrshire bacon, sausages, beans, black pudding, potato pancake, mushroom, tomatoes, toast, and (optional) haggis. Every single morning.

3. Early morning and late night meals.
Nothing is open before 10am and after 8pm, even in the major cities. In Glasgow, we did find a tiny open-till-midnight shop with great crepes. Yum.

4. Scary sightings
Beware! But I did find Nessie!