I live here. Just off the right edge of the photo. When I first arrived in town to have a look around, I hated it on sight. I thought it was shabby and tired and barren. I was bitten 6 times by midges, it was three hours by train from the nearest city, it was misty and rainy and I decided within 50 yards of the train station to get the next train back to civilisation.
Luckily for me the next train anywhere was six hours later, so I took a walk up and down the length of the high street, bought a newspaper and a sandwich and went to have a look behind the railway station for a sheltered place to sit down.
Behind the station is the ferry terminal for boats to the Western Isles / Inner and Outer Hebrides and there was plenty of time for a round trip to the Isle of Mull. Forty-five minutes by boat, one hour on the coach to Tobermory (Mull's capital) at the other end and time for a hot cup of tea and a nice sit down before coming back with half an hour to spare for going to the loo before the train home.
A dull, tiresome, wet day. All in six hours on the train, an hour by taxi, an hour and a half on a boat, two hours on a coach just to decide that I wasn't going to apply for the job and move out here.
But, on the boat on the way back I went out onto the deck in the dirty muggy rain and watched the scenery roll by. Just off Kerrera Island I caught sight of two dolphins playing in the water, the sun came out and a rainbow appeared, the smell of warming earth wafted over the water and I just changed my mind. Moved here a month later and can't believe I ever wanted to be anywhere else.
