46. Oban: Canadian Hopes


Photo of 2 Hope descendants: Deb from Canada and Maggie from Australia meeting in Scotland, the ancestral home of the Hope family.

Today was the last of 3 Hope descendants’ reunions, each from different lines of the family. My Canadian cousins are staying in cottages attached to Duntrune Castle, near Oban, so it was an easy 50-minute drive for us to see them. Duntrune Castle was built in the 13th century and has been the seat for several Scottish clans including the MacDougalls, Campbell’s, McDonald’s and is currently the seat of Clan Malcolm.

We joined some of my cousins for a walk through the beautifully maintained garden before joining all of them for lunch - “them” was 10 cousins who eventually made the trip together.

After lunch we all drove to some nearby Rock Art locations before we made our departure and they were going in different directions.

It was a wonderful day but the time was way too short. Deb and I made an instant connection and it was sad to leave her and the others - more quiet tears 🥲

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