A lone kilted Highlander played Scotland the Brave on his bagpipes as Madonna arrived in Scotland on Monday afternoon of December 18, to begin preparations for her wedding to British film director Guy Ritchie later this week, reported Agence France Presse.
A private jet carrying the star, dressed in a long, brown tartan overcoat and checkered trousers, her betrothed and her two children Rocco and Lourdes, landed at Inverness Airport, reported Mr. Showbiz.
The star and her family climbed into a waiting Range Rover and sped off towards the picturesque Skibo Castle in the Scottish Highlands, where the couple will be staying before the wedding on Friday.
More vehicles carrying Madonna's entourage and her luggage followed behind them.
The hotly-anticipated marriage was announced on December 7, when in accordance with Scottish law a list of those wishing to be married was put up on a notice board at nearby Dornoch Cathedral.
Since then hundreds of photographers and journalists have converged on the sleepy village of Dornoch to await the couple's arrival.
With just a few days to go until the nuptials, there remained uncertainty about the precise venue for the wedding ceremony itself.
Dornoch's thirteenth century cathedral is thought to be a possibility. Madonna was reported to have tested the acoustics there by bursting into an impromptu rendition of Ave Maria on an earlier visit.
There were reports that Rocco, Madonna's four-month-old son by Ritchie, may be baptized in the cathedral font on the eve of the wedding.
However the couple may opt for a more intimate ceremony at Skibo Castle, where it will be easier for her security detail to keep out the press and inquisitive fans.
Madonna will want to avoid a repeat of her first wedding, to actor Sean Penn in California in 1985, when the sound of press helicopters buzzing overhead drowned out the couple's vows.
The couple chose to tie the knot at Skibo Castle partly because of Ritchie's Scottish roots but also because of the castle's reputation as a luxurious bolt hole for celebrities seeking some privacy.
The nineteenth century building was renovated in 1990 by entrepreneur Peter de Savary. It has 20 rooms and 12 separate lodges set in 3,800 hectares (7,500 acres) of grounds.
A double room for the night at the castle will usually set guests back by about $852 though a stay there during the festive season costs more.
Actor Michael Douglas and Welsh actress Catherine Zeta-Jones had once planned a Highland wedding at Skibo, which Zeta-Jones described as "the most romantic place on Earth."
However, the couple, whose November nuptials rival Madonna and Ritchie's for the coveted title of Showbiz Wedding of the Year, opted for the plush surroundings of New York's Plaza Hotel, following an unwelcome leak of their plans to the press. – Albawaba.com.
© 2000 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
