Inverness is an excellent touring centre with good road, rail and air connections. With its suspension bridges across the River Ness and old stone buildings, it is a pretty place which is well- known for its floral displays. In fact it won the 1996 award for Best Large Town in the Bloom of Britain competition. In December 2000, it was one of only 3 towns to be awarded city status by the Queen. The official ceremony took place on 19 March 2001 and celebrations were held in July around the time of the Inverness Highland Games. The local population is about 42,000 in the city plus another 20,000 in the district.
Walk down along the river banks (in the direction of the Caledonian Canal) and you'll find the Ness Islands where you can escape from the hustle and bustle of the shops. Cross the river on the little bridges and you can visit Bught Park. Close by between the ice rink and the sports centre is the Floral Hall - a sub-tropical horticultural extravaganza with small waterfall, fish and alsorts of plants/trees, (open all year round). Entrance fee only £1.20. I particularly like the cactus hall - quite a surprise! Walking up the river in the other direction (towards the harbour) you will see Ben Wyvis on the skyline.
Inverness has an excellent museum and art gallery between the castle and the tourist office. Open 9am-5pm, Monday-Saturday all year. Includes gift shop and coffee shop. Local history talks take place here on the first Wednesday evening of each month.
Eden Court Theatre, situated near the cathedral, has events listings throughout the year for drama, music and cinema. Built in the 1970s, it incorporates part of the old Bishop's Palace and is said to be haunted by the 'Green Lady' ghost of a wife of one of the bishop's who hanged herself there.
The other place to see films (movies) is at the multi-screen Warner cinema complex just outside city centre off the main road heading to Aberdeen. Also check out art.tm which is an art gallery and studio on the riverside at 20 Bank Street (open 11am- 6pm, Tuesday-Saturday). The Spectrum Centre by the bus station has a cafe and is the meeting place for many local clubs and education classes. Look out for Scottish Showtime music and dance performances during the summer.
Inverness has 3 golf courses (Inverness Golf Club, Loch Ness Golf Course & Torvean Golf Club. Soccer fans might be interested in the local team: Inverness Caledonian Thistle Football Club (aka Caley Thistle).
Inverness Castle was built on the site of an earlier fortress in 1835 and sits on a low cliff overlooking the river. Today it houses the Sherriffs Court. Take Castle Street which winds its way up around the rear of the castle and past some pretty floral displays to get to the statue of Flora MacDonald. At the Castle Garrison Encounter you can journey back in time to 1745, enlist in the Regiment and meet some of its other characters live. Visits take about 40 minutes: open daily during the tourist season from 10.30am to 5.30pm. Tel: 01463 243 363 / Fax: 01463 710 755. A piper plays every evening from June to start September from 7pm to 7.30pm on the Castle Hill.
It is thought that 11th-century castle which featured in Shakepeare's play Macbeth (even though there is no historical evidence to suggest that it was where Duncan I was murdered) was in fact located to the east of the present castle (in what is now Auldcastle Road). Originally built of wood, it was replaced by a fortress of stone on Castle Hill. Apparently there have been sightings of the ghost of King Duncan walking along the banks of the River Ness in full regalia.
On the opposite bank of the river is Saint Andrew's Cathedral (minus its spires as the funds ran out before they could be completed). The font is a copy of Thorwalden's font in Copenhagen Cathedral. Look out for the Russian gold icons. Concerts and organ recitals are held. The teashop in the old schoolhouse is open from March to September Monday to Saturday 10.30am to 3.30pm. From here you can walk down the river banks and explore the Ness Islands.
There are many old houses in the city centre dating from the 16th and 17th centuries. Built in 1791, the Steeple on the corner of Bridge Street and Church Street used to be the steeple of the old jail. Opposite, on the corner of Bridge Street and Castle Street is the Town House, an interesting 19th century Gothic-style building. Although it is used as local government offices, you can have a little look around - go inside and admire the fancy staircase.
Cromwell's Clock Tower in Shore Street is all that remains of the large citadel built between 1652 and 1657 by Oliver Cromwell's Commonwealth Army. Now part of the ever expanding industrial estate.
However much the City of Inverness has to offer the Visitor, No excursion to the Area would be complete without a visit to the fameous battle field on the outskirts of Inverness and subject of our next article.....
