Chronicle for 9 May 2012

We had breakfast this morning whilst watching the red squirrels in the garden. There are a number of squirrel boxes set up in the trees and the squirrels were doing the circuit via the circulatory route involving sprinting up the trees, scampering amongst the branches, leaping across the voids and just managing to hang on before descending down to recommence their feasting at the next box of nuts.

Our first destination today was the Highland Wildlife Park which is associated with the Edinburgh Zoo, however the wildlife park is one of these drive through affairs and it covers a fairly large acreage. It has areas devoted to a number of animals such as a small herd of Bison, a group of Przewalski's Horses, Elk, Musk Ox, Reindeer, to name just a few. Then we progressed through the walking part of the park which included animals such as the Amur Tiger (the two females are currently courting favours with the newly imported male), Artic Fox, Scottish Wildcat, European Wolves, etc. They specialise here in endangered cold climate animals which considering where we are makes sense. However it does seem a little odd to see a couple of Polar Bears lolling around in a grass paddock.

During our second circuit in the car the Bison decided to stand in the middle of the road and refused to budge. There isn't a lot you can do when several tonnes of grumpy muscle decides to block your path, except just wait for them to move aside in their own good time.

We spent quite a bit more time at the park than we had anticipated but it was well worth the visit, with many of the animals displaying their springtime young.

After doing a bit of a scenic route through the back ways and byways we made our way to the Dalwhinnie Distillery and had a brief tasting. As with everyone that we have encountered up here, the staff were more than helpful, and we walked away with not a bottle of Dalwhinnie but another recommendation, and a sampling passport each for many of the other distilleries in the region.

Back on the road we took the long road home having a picnic dinner by the Loch looking across the water to the snow capped munroes. It was snowing earlier today with the snow sitting at about 700m (we have been told). Half way though our dinner, the lovely evening turned into Scotch Mist and the tops of the mountains disappeared from sight. We took the opportunity to drive up the mountain road to the base of the funicular that takes you further up the mountain. It was closed for the day but we were able to look down on where we had just been enjoying our dinner. The end of another great day in the highlands.

Chronicle for 8 May 2012

We had a leisurely start this morning, starting the day by heading into Perth. After parking our car and having a short wander through the town we we faced by the local parking wardens. The parking fares are very cheap, but being 6 minutes late we were almost nabbed with a £1000 fine! We managed to scrape away with that ... just ... and headed out of town very promptly.

Whilst in Perth we went into a small art gallery run by a guy who was severely outnumbered by woman around a table which we found out was an artist circle. Very entertaining. It was debatable who was running the show.

Heading north we found ourselves travelling through countryside very reminiscent of New Zealand. Large areas of farmland surrounded by high hills and mountains of a greater scale than we have seen anywhere in the UK until now. Some parts reminded us of Central Otago, other parts Tongariro, and others could be anywhere in the central farming districts. We were now within the boundaries of the Cairngorms National Park. What continues to surprise us is that working farms, private land and farmland are included as part of the National Parks.

As the land became steeper, the vegetation became sparser to be replaced largely with heather and the ski lifts became more prolific, we found ourselves heading towards Balmoral Castle. The summer residence of the Queen (she spends 10 weeks per year here) is situated in a most impressive landscape. In fact, that is what had the greatest effect upon us throughout the visit. This place really is stunning. We learnt that the only month of the year that gardeners can guarantee that there  will not be a frost is in August. However despite the odds against them they must produce produce for the table during her visit. It is interesting to see the back drop and subjects that we have seen so many times in the royal portraiture over the years. And for the record, the ballroom at Balmoral isn't nearly as big as what the photos would have you believe.

After leaving Balmoral headed through more of the National Park landscape via single lane roads, either winding and climbing or descending at equally alarming rates. We even managed to see a grouse that we disturbed fluttering off into the heather.

We arrived at our destination of Dulnain Bridge, not far from Granton-on-Spey, at another old manor house. We decided not to have dinner in house as it seemed rather posh and definitely out of our price range. Instead we headed into town and enjoyed a delicious venison casserole served by an overworked Hungarian woman.

Chronicle for 7 May 2012

After a hearty breakfast we left Anstruther and our wonderful hosts this morning, heading for Perth.

On our way we stopped at several of the little harbourside fishing villages (Pittenweem, St Monans) meandering along village by village towards Kinross alongside Loch Leven.

We caught the ferry, which was more of a dingy, out to the island in the middle of the Loch to admire the remains of Loch Leven Castle. This was where Mary Queen of Scots was incarcerated in 1567 before she devised her escape. We couldn't help but be impressed by how small the island was and also how cold and miserable it could have been. One woman on the ferry was saying how atmospheric and romantic she thought it was, to which she got a resounding "If you say so!"

From here we headed north of Perth to Dunkeld where we first admired the Cathedral, half of which is in ruins and the other half is operational as a church. Amongst other tombs within the church is the tomb of Wolf of Badenoch, who took his revenge on some of the nearby towns by burning them to the ground when they excommunicated him for running away with his mistress and bearing a number of children with her.

Of course no visit here would be complete without taking the short stroll along the river Tay to admire the last standing oak of Birnam forest of Shakespeare/Macbeth fame. However standing may be a stretch as it is being propped up on several sides with sturdy posts. But considering its age we think it deserves a bit of support. A huge old tree with a hollow centre. And to think that this area was once covered with specimens like this.

We finally made it to our destination of Perth tonight and checked into our hotel, a grand old building that appears as if was once a manor hall. Greeted with the hospitable service that we have become accustomed to north of the border.

Chronicle for 6 May 2012

Full Scottish breakfast in the sunshine gave us the promise of a great day. However as we sat in the car about to leave the image in the rear view mirror was one of huge black clouds. Our first stop to get some photos was habourdside in Anstruther. When the rain started as we headed towards Crail.

By the time we got to Crail the rain had turned into hail. We had a look at a couple of galleries and potteries by which time the rain had stopped. We had a quick look around the harbour and then headed into a small gallery on the way out. We got involved in a deep and meaningful discussion with the resident artist about printmaking, advertising, and artistry in general. It took some time to tear ourselves away as they seemed inclined to want to talk.

Our next stop was St Andrews where we went for a wander around the Cathedral ruins before heading towards the Old Golf Course. Once again the rain drifted in and we sought refuge in the inn. But it was when we went for a walk along the beach that we discovered that it can rain, hail, and sunshine simultaneously here.

We finished the day having dinner at the Dreel Tavern, where James II stayed for a night during his incognito tour of his realm and was reportedly carried across the Dreel river on the back of one of the local lasses.

The tavern was one of the typical Ye Olde places that has a door that you need to duck through, ceilings that prevent you from standing upright, chunky furniture, huge fireplaces, and the smell of urine that seems to pervade them no matter how clean they really are.

When I asked the barman which of the local ales that he would recommend I was told that they had had a busy weekend and so they only had two ales left, one wasn't to his taste and the other he wouldn't recommend. Despite that we had a lovely dinner.

Chronicle for 5 May 2012

We woke up this morning to brilliant sunshine, to the sounds of birds, and the squawking jibber-jabber of fellow guests down the hall. Regarding the weather we are hoping that this is an indication of how our holiday is going to be.

After an excellent breakfast we wandered up the road the few yards to Stirling Castle. We ended up spending most of the morning there exploring the complex arrangement of rooms, hall, passages, nooks and crannies.

After seeing everything that we could and enjoying a nice coffee and cake, we headed over to the site that we had been admiring from the castle ... The William Wallace Monument. Sitting on the top of the hill looking down, it is very impressive. After a short walk up the hill, and the the climb up the 246 narrow, tight, spiral stairs that make up the staircase, we admired the view from near the top. We were surprised to hear someone complaining about the lack of wheelchair access within a 120 year old building. However it is probably a fair point that they should have been told about the lack of access before being sold the ticket and climbing the hill to the monument.

Leaving Stirling we headed out towards the Kingdom of Fife via the coastal road. The first part of the journey made us wonder why it was called the coastal route when all got to admire was industrial sites with no sight of the sea. However this soon changed and we enjoyed a delightful drive looking out over the Firth of the Fourth on the fifth of the fifth.

We arrived at our destination of Anstruther and checked into our B@B (spindrift). A wonderful place with hospitable hosts and a plethora of whiskies available for our pleasure. Which after a short walk down the road to the best 'fish and chip' shop in town, we sat down with the whiskey menu to decide upon which to enjoy first. This is going to be the beginning of a beautiful journey, a journey that I could well get used to.

Tomorrow St Andrews, which is just up the road, but that depends on how the moods take us.

Chronicle for 4 May 2012

Today our holiday begins. Tonight we will be in Stirling and who knows what the road today will bring. We like these exploratory adventures. Off to the land of bagpipes, oatcakes, and elevated vistas.

We didn't leave as early as we had hoped and got 'locked in' on the roads leaving London. After a couple brief stops we stopped at Durham and had look around the cathedral. We had been told that it was one of the top cathedrals in land. We thought that it was very large, although a little 'chunky' looking.

Leaving Durham Justine received a call to say that someone else was using her EFTPOS card. Card cancelled first day of our holiday!

Crossed the border into Scotland through to Stirling, and our first impression at 8pm on a Friday night is that each of the few people around in the streets was pissed.

We found a great little eatery for a simple dinner. Great service with a smile. A cafe run by a couple of delightful polish girls. Rings bells of remembrance of our first breakfast in Dublin. That was a hotel also run by Poles however delightful wasn't the way we remembered them. Such a contrast to tonights hosts.

Negligence

It's been a while since I posted here, and there are a number of reasons why this has been. However it has been pointed out to me rather directly that as this blog is essentially a record of our travels I should at least keep the records of our travels up to date. And as such where are the records of our trip to Scotland last year? So for anyone who may or may not have been reading this I do apologise, as I did to the person that raised the question.

The following few posts are the posts in question. If you have read them already, so be it, if you have not, here they are.

What this exercise has highlighted for me is that in reading over these posts today (yes they are still unedited, so please accept them for what they are, a daily record of events and experiences, as a stream of consciousness) it recalled for me what a great time that we had in a wonderful part of this country. Those days will be recalled as part of the 'good times' that we have shared.

LONDON : SUNDAY : 08th MAY 2011

After the suspect weather over the last few days we woke this morning to a lovely sunny day. We enjoyed our last ‘Irish Breakfast’ looking out at the wonderful view over the water. Our hosts are both artists so we are surrounded by their works both on the walls and by the sculptures in the gardens. It is a fantastic setting and a great way end our Irish adventure.

Unfortunately we couldn’t dwell too long as we had a ferry to catch. After queuing the appropriate time, we shuffled on board behind the stream of people disgorged by the on board tour buses, and found seats that they chose to leave for us. The seats we had overlooked the polished dance floor, which was thankfully barricaded off, we didn’t think now was the time to be dealing with the synchronised displaced hips of the elders around us. We were pleased that shortly after leaving the port they started playing a movie on the screens around the dance floor. This created a scurry by the elderly, moving chairs, attempting to move bolted down tables, pulling down blinds, and stealing seats with gay abandon. It was worth the circus though, the movie was ‘The Kings Speech’ a movie we have been meaning to see.

It was a fairly smooth crossing, and after three and a half hours (12:30pm), we drove off at the other end. This proved rather interesting, we thought we were disembarking at Pembroke (South), however we discovered after a few minutes that we were in fact in Fishguard (North).

FISHGARD : Wales : Population 3,300

The town of Fishguard is divided into two parts, Lower Fishguard and Upper Fishguard. Lower Fishguard is situated where the River Gwaun meets the sea in a deep valley. It is a typical fishing village with a short tidal quay. Upper Fishguard contains the parish church, the High Street and most of the modern development. The coasts of Wales were increasingly subject to Norse raids during the Viking Era, and in the latter part of the 10th century Norse trading posts and settlements emerged within Dyfed, with Fishguard established sometime between 950 and 1000 AD. The town was originally surrounded by secure castle walls and the name Fishguard derives from old Norse fiskigarðr meaning ‘fish catching enclosure’.

After escaping the clutches of Fishguard and the ferry related traffic (the ferry terminal seems to be the sole feature of this town), we headed out into the Welsh countryside towards home. In some ways it seems very much like New Zealand rural countryside with the tidy green fields, boundary fences, shelter belts, sparse habitation, and lots of sheep. The biggest giveaway that we weren’t in ‘The Land of the Long White Cloud’ was the unpronounceable place names. We have no idea how we are supposed to get our tongues around those puppies.

We stopped at a few places along the way for various reasons, until we finally reached the bridge of no return, the border between Wales and England. We suddenly remembered that we didn’t have the money for the toll to cross the bridge. Firstly we have been cutting it fine as we have been swapping backwards and forwards between Pounds and Euros over the last few weeks, Secondly we spent the last few pounds in our pockets buying ourselves a Magnum each (a very noble cause). We were just considering the consequences of offering an ice cream stick as payment when we saw the sign that told us that the toll only applies to those entering Wales, and not those leaving as we were. It does raise the question … why? Are they doing their best to keep the English out?

From here on it was Mother England all the way, and the change in landscape was remarkable. There was a distinct change once we crossed the river border. A little less green, and a lot more of the long straight motorway driving experience. Five hours driving time since leaving the ferry, we arrived home at 7:30pm. After doing the compulsory unpacking, reorganizing, washing, and trying to mentally prepare ourselves for a working day tomorrow, we sat down and reflected on our time away.

It has been an amazing experience that we will not forget, there were some surprises along the way. It wasn’t the ‘Emerald Isles’ of green that we have been led to believe, there is a lot of brown and rock as well. The land was far more varied with amazing clashes and contrasts of landscape around every corner. One of the things that impressed us was the age and the history of this island, going back thousands of years. We hope that we gained a small insight into why the Irish are the way they are and to understand them a little better, however we also appreciate it would take years to fully know or understand their complex history. We were impressed with the number of ruins of old buildings, cottages, churches and Abbeys. They are everywhere, those that weren’t destroyed and razed by Cromwell and his band of not so merry men, were vacated by people unable to feed themselves in a barely inhabitable environment. We were interested to hear the perspective of the Irish people on everything ranging from the ‘Troubles’ to the ‘Celtic Tiger’. Most of all we will miss the people, their sense of humour, their Guinness and Soda bread, their positive attitude, and their love of the Craic. Ireland is a place to watch, the ‘Troubles’ are behind them, they have had their Celtic Tiger years, they have immersed themselves in the economic down turn, they have had a roller coaster ride throughout the centuries, who knows what is going to happen next. As Oscar Wilde once said “The suspense is terrible, I hope it will last.”

ROSSLARE : SATURDAY : 07th MAY 2011

After along and interesting discussion with a group of our fellow guests we headed out onto the road again. Our fellow guests were a group of elderly, well traveled, American academia, who are doing a road trip similar to ourselves, although considerably more organized than we have been. A very interesting trio, who are very interested in everything around them, and seem to have a real contribution to conversations as well.

KELLS PRIORY : County Kilkenny : Republic of Ireland

The Augustine priory is situated alongside King's River beside the village of Kells. One of its most striking features is a collection of medieval tower houses spaced at intervals along and within walls which enclose a site of just over 3 acres. These give the priory the appearance more of a fortress than of a place of worship and from them comes its local name of 'Seven Castles'. During its first century and a half the priory was attacked and burned on three occasions, firstly by Lord William de Bermingham in 1252, by the Scots army of Edward Bruce on Palm Sunday 1326, and by a second William de Bermingham in 1327. It seems likely then that the walls and fortifications date back to this period of unrest.

Our first stop for the day was Kells Priory. Getting there we had the sense that we were really getting into the heartland of rural Ireland, especially when we had to pull off the road and stop the engine so that a couple of farmers could lead their young skittish horses down the road.

What is impressive about Kells Priory is firstly the size of the place, and this is quickly followed by the absence of tour buses, tour guides, souvenir shops, and admission fees. This is the ruin of a 12^th century priory covering a large area of a farmers land, whose sole occupants (in fact the only sign of life) are the sheep and lambs. Unfortunately the sheep and lambs are rather prolific, so we spent much of our time watching where we were putting our feet. However it was a pleasure to have the freedom of roaming from room to room through this site without the usual visual pollution.

As we left here we spotted a sign directing us towards a ‘Round Tower’ in Kilree, the only indigenous building style of Ireland. After driving through more of rural Ireland, we found the site. Beside the stile leading towards the tower was a bright yellow warning sign stating ‘Bull in Field’. We have to say that it made us think twice and have a good look around before progressing across the self same field to the tower and the ruin of the little church with its graveyard. We didn’t get to see the bull, and so we aren’t sure if it was put there as a deterrent or as a bit of Irish humour. Just a few meters from the graveyard (in the bull paddock) is an early high cross, which marks the resting place of one of a 9^th century Irish high king, who drowned in the nearby river trying to save one of his servants.

BENNETTSBRIDGE : County Kilkenny : Republic of Ireland : Population 685

Situated on the river Nore, it has become a craft centre in recent years, with several pottery and craft producers located at the old mill beside the weir.

From here it was on to Bennettsbridge, to check out the pottery at Nicholas Mosse Irish Country Shop. The pottery was very nice, although the prices not so nice. It seems they are going for the Provonce look with sponged designs along the lines of Laura Ashley. Not really what we were looking for and so we moved on. However it was an interesting place starting off as a flour mill and then converting to pottery. They have a small hydro generator running off the river outside and so they are completely self sufficient.

INISTIOGE : County Kilkenny : Republic of Ireland : Population 263

The earliest recorded reference to Inistioge refers to a battle between the kingdom of Osraighi and an army of Norse, recorded as taking place in the year 962 AD in the Annals of the Four Masters.

We stopped at Inisitioge for lunch, and despite what the guidebooks say, the most impressive feature of this town is the ten arch stone bridge over the river. What this town inspired from us were the questions how, why and where? How do people survive in a place like this, why do they stay here, where do they go to for work? This was the first in a series of ghost towns that we went through that seemed to have the majority of houses empty, no one on the streets, and no signs of life at all. It makes us wonder if they are always like this, or whether they come to life over summer. Has this been the result of the economic downturn, and the collapse of the Celtic Tiger, or have they always been like this?

WATERFORD : County Waterford : Republic of Ireland : Population 45,750

Founded in 914 AD by the Vikings, it is the country's oldest city. The city motto Urbs Intacta Manet Waterfordia ("Waterford remains the untaken city") was granted by King Henry VII of England in 1497 after Waterford refused to recognise the claims of the pretenders Lambert Simnel and Perkin Warbeck to the English throne. Today, Waterford is known for Waterford Crystal, a legacy of the city's former glass making industry.

Our reason for going to Waterford was to go to the Waterford Crystal Visitor Centre. What we found there was a lot of crystal that our grandmothers would have liked to own, but not really to our taste. However they seem to cater very well to the American tourists and seem to be doing their best to milk them for their dollars. A lot of the pieces are obviously directed at them and the Irish-American connections. There were large crystal centerpieces with cowboys and western themes, there were crystal gridiron helmets, there were large ostentatious pieces that no one in their right mind would be attracted to this side of the Mississippi. I was a little disappointed that in the toilets they didn’t have a crystal urinal. Perhaps the receivers took that when they moved in a few years ago.

Once we headed out of the visitor centre we found the rest of the city very quiet. Very much in keeping with the smaller ghost towns that we have been passing through, rather surprising for a city this size.

ROSSLARE : County Wexford : Republic of Ireland : Population 1000

The village of Rosslare grew up to serve the needs of the harbour, first developed in 1906 by the Great Western Railway and the Great Southern and Western Railway to accommodate steam ferry traffic between Great Britain and Ireland.

From here we headed back out onto the back roads and byways, around the coast to our destination for this evening, Rosslare. This is the ferry terminal, the ferry that we will be taking tomorrow morning to head back to the UK. It is sad to think that our holiday is over, sad to think that we are leaving these shores. The last few weeks have gone way too fast, although it also seems like so long ago that we arrived in Dublin at the commencement of this journey. Along the way we have seen so much, experienced so much, and met so many wonderful people. It really has been an adventure. We have learned so much about this island, about the history, we think we have come some way to understanding a little bit more the people that live here.

KILKENNY : FRIDAY : 06th MAY 2011

We had an international breakfast this morning sharing the table with couples from Minnesota - USA, Victoria - Canada, Zurich - Switzerland, and ourselves. The American couple were as you would expect (well he was anyway) full of himself and attention seeking, the Canadian couple were as you would expect … nice, and the Swiss couple … well they were different to what we experienced when we were there … they were very pleasant. Maybe the nicest of the Swiss people leave Switzerland, or perhaps being on holiday brings out the best in them. This particular couple however we suspect dabbled on the fringes of ‘Alternative’. After some very interesting discussions over ‘Irish’ breakfast – with the compulsory black and white puddings – we waved a fond farewell to Kinsale, but not before having one more spin around this cute little village.

ROCK OF CASHEL : County Tipperary : Republic of Ireland

Known as Cashel of the Kings and St. Patrick's Rock. Built in the 12^th Century, the Rock of Cashel was the traditional seat of the kings of Munster for several hundred years prior to the Norman invasion. According to local mythology, the Rock of Cashel originated in the Devil's Bit, a mountain 30 km north of Cashel when St. Patrick banished Satan from a cave, resulting in the Rock's landing in Cashel.

After spending the morning on the motorway looking at the green pasture land all around us – so different to what we became accustomed to down the West coast – we arrived in Cashel to have a look at a certain rock. Sitting above the town is a huge rock, the home of a clutch of imposing religious buildings, which collectively can be looked upon as a castle. For over 1000 years this castle has been a symbol of power, being the seat of the Munster king before being handed over to the church in a very clever political move. As a church this ‘Rock’ has changed hands between Catholic and Protestant more times than we have had hot dinners. One man in particular had affiliations both ways and changed his robes according to his whim at the time. This ‘Rock’ has more history than we can comprehend, this ‘Rock’ is a justified icon of Irish history, this ‘Rock’ is currently going through a major preservation process to prevent it from tumbling down. After 1000 years of rain and weather being absorbed by the sandstone blocks of which it is built, they are in process of trying to dry her out. In the first year of this process they extracted 250, 000 litres of water out of this rock upon a rock. This place has an amazing story, it has an amazing atmosphere and they are doing an amazing job in trying to retain that for future generations. We have been told that the Irish government directs its efforts towards preservation rather than restoration for their ancient sites, an approach that we think works well.

After heading down the hill for lunch, we were captivated by the locals who it seems just like to talk. One woman was talking to us about the weather, and when we commented on the rain she said that it was normal here, what isn’t normal is the sunshine that they have had for the last month. Every time they get a day of sunshine they get excited and go out and buy bikinis for her daughters, paddling pool, a BBQ, etc etc and then … the next day it will be raining again, so everything gets put away again for another six months.

KILKENNY : County Kilkenny : Republic of Ireland : Population 8600

Kilkenny began with an early sixth century ecclesiastical foundation. In 1609 King James I of England granted Kilkenny a Royal Charter giving it the status of a city.

The limerick : There once were two cats of Kilkenny
Each thought there was one cat too many
So they fought and they hit
And they scratched and they bit
Till (excepting their nails
And the tips of their tails)
Instead of two cats there weren't any!

We meandered our way through the back roads and byways to our destination for the night, Kilkenny. It is still raining which does take the shine off things a little, although we can still see through the damp mist thrown up by the passing cars that this is a very pretty town with plenty of character. With a tangle of narrow streets with brightly coloured shop fronts and little alleyways connecting them together. In the centre of town is the large imposing castle with a complex of design stores on the opposite side of the street.

After unloading our growing pile of baggage into our wonderful accommodation we decided to go for a walk, however the continuing rain changed that plan, so we drove into town and walked from there around the network of little streets before settling into the pub suggested to us by our host for dinner. It wasn’t so much a pub as a bar that serviced the hotels nearby, however the food was very good as was the live music that accompanied it.

During our meandering around the town we did our best to seek out the souvenir shops for some mementos. We have to say though that the items on offer during the later part of our visit here have been less than impressive with each town offering the same uninspiring claptrap. This has meant that we have turned our eyes elsewhere for things to remember these places by, unfortunately this means that we have bought more things than we intended to and have been left discussing whether we have enough wall space left at home to buy another picture (hence the increasing baggage).