Scotland

Exploring

Two quite different short trips.

First off to Glasgow for an urban adventure (though we’ve been there lots before).

on the train

We took plenty of provisions and entertainment for the journey 

Our bed for the night was new, both to us and Glasgow at the brand new Motel One ; they even had photos from the West Highland line to make us feel at home. It’s close to Central station and the shops and is very, very dog friendly.

B at motelone Glasgow

“What’s next?  I’ve finished my tea”

If you don’t know the Motel One brand they are well worth checking out. We’ve stayed at their Princes Street branch and they’re also in Newcastle and Manchester.

I couldn’t go to Glasgow without visiting the shops but  it’s not quite as dog friendly as Edinburgh, possibly because a lot of my favourites  (eg. Whistles, Space NK ) which are dog friendly there are inside malls in Glasgow. The massive Waterstones branch on Sauchiehall Street is dog friendly though,  as is Anta and lots of lovely independents on and around Great Western Road. Luckily it was mostly sunny and MrS was happy to wait outside on Buchanan Street while I shopped, and of course Dog S loved all the attention from passers by.

It wasn’t all consumerism though, nor sitting about for DogS.  We had a pretty extensive walkies, in fact I covered more steps than I do at home. I’ve walked all over Edinburgh and explored many overseas cities on foot but apart from shopping trips Glasgow on foot has been a path less travelled.

 

Glasgow is full of impressive buildings, also some haunting ruins.  The city centre is full of memories of Glasgow’s time as “second city of empire” and those Victorians  didn’t limit their exuberance to building for  commerce;  on a hill behind the Cathedral is the Necropolis.

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It’s a good place for a walk with views over the whole city  – and on a clear day up to the highlands.

birthsmarriages deaths

  Births, Marriages and Deaths though not necessarily in that order*

I thought back to our visit when I read this post today**.

And our second trip? Quite different, over the sea to ….. Tiree, the most westerly of the Inner Hebrides. Because of its westerly position it’s much sunnier and drier than many of the islands and also much windier!  So windy in fact that it’s a hub for surfing and windsurfing, the Tiree Wave Classic had been held the weekend before our visit.

We stayed at The Old Thatch in Scarinish,  small and cosy just perfect for two people and one dog. A traditional two roomed cottage it would have housed a large family well into the 20th century.

 

through the bathroom window

view from the bath 

Now Tiree’s built environment might be a tad less grandiose than Glasgow’s (though very attractive) but its beaches would be hard to beat.

And it was even warm and sunny enough for a picnic

Our lunch spot was close to the Ringing Stone an “Erratic” which landed on Tiree  after a volcanic eruption. Don’t worry about getting hit on the head by flying rocks though, it happened millennia ago.  Nearby basking seals jumped into the sea and swam close to get a good look at us.

the Ringing Stone

seals

watching us watching them

 

It wasn’t all gorgeous natural beauty though, once again all too much plastic waste washed in by the tide.     When the shells are sand the plastic will still be around.

two wrecks

the wreck of the schooner Mary Stewart at Scarininsh

 

old me boat

and another old lady retired ashore

 

 

Two short but sweet breaks, each lovely in their own way.

Marina xx

PS. I’m just back from a shorter trip, just one night in Perth.  A shout out to Gringos a lovely, lively bar, dog friendly of course with great food and friendly staff. Not the place for a quiet romantic  night perhaps but well worth a visit. Another plus for Perth(shire), a selection of libraries  have introduced dog friendly Fridays .  No accommodation report because I like to post positive reviews, the only plus point being DogS could come too.

*The Necropolis, Glasgow Cathedral and Infirmary (in the background right).

** I was a bit delayed completing and posting this.

Islay

We’ve had another short break, this time to the slightly less balmy climes of Islay. Storm Callum had been raging, flooding our local shopping centre, cancelling ferries and generally causing mayhem (and very sadly loss of life) but luckily had subsided by the time we needed to travel. Still we stopped off to fortify and warm ourselves up with a hobbity second breakfast at the lovely Smiddy Bistro

spicy beans

Spicy beans and egg on toast

Then it was back on the road to Kennacraig to join the Finlaggan

We’ve travelled to Islay before but always as a means of visiting Jura and though we did make a quick trip over,  this time it was all about Islay.

It’s probably best known as a distillery island and while we popped into the newest* one Kilchoman for some lunch (and picked up a bottle to take home) we were more interested in exploring some of Islay’s spectacular beaches.

And of course DogS approved of this option.

Even thought sun was shining I was not tempted to paddle, these beaches Machir and Saligo bays face out into the Atlantic and have dangerous rip tides and fierce waves.  I didn’t want to risk DogS following me and getting swept away.

I found a piece of slate and made my mark

Marina slate

But was very aware of leaving no trace…

notrace

Unfortunately even on these wild and fairly remote beaches that wasn’t always the case

blue plastic

We couldn’t manage to take away this plastic but removed a few “poo bags” worth of sweetie wrappers, plastic bottles and cable ties. And then because I was looking for obvious litter I began to see the tiny ground up pieces of plastic which we’d have had to sieve the sand to remove.

trying to leave only footprints

trying to leave only footprints

rubbish face

Bleurgh!

MrS didn’t miss out on his history fix, as well as the distillery and gorgeous beaches Kilchoman is home to this ancient carved cross and a poignant military cemetery marking the loss of the Otranto in 1918.

kilchoman cross

 

And true to form good food and drink was enjoyed, though we couldn’t take advantage of the bar at the Bowmore hotel. (We were driving)

DogS didn’t miss out

A walk through Bridgend woods gave DogS some good sniffs

Bridgend woods

 

And she could sniff but didn’t see this fine guy at Islay Woollen Mill

Sam

Who’s that sitting in My mill?

And we got the shivers listening to the seal song at Portnahaven

portnahaven

Portnahaven, the seals were sitting out on the island. Singing. 

A very short visit but great fun and still lots to return and explore

across to Jura

The Paps of Jura across Loch Indaal from the Bowmore – Bridgend road

And a few treats to take home.

goodies

sitting on an Islay wollen mill blanket

Until next time

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*Kilchoman is the newest until Ardnahoe opens later this year.

We stayed at the very comfortable, dog (and people) friendly Bridgend Hotel and must give a special mention to the dog friendliness and sausages  at our lunch stop The Bowmore Hotel

…walks with a little brown dog

I may have written this before but there are few things that can’t be brightened up by a little brown dog. Recently two much loved local dogs have died;  I’ll miss seeing them about, though nowhere near as much as their people will and it’s made me specially glad to have B around.

Part of the joy of walking with a dog is the pleasure they seem to get from their surroundings. B meanders from side to side, on “zombie pawtrol” as it’s known by her Twitter pals. I think she mostly “sees” through her nose but mine is a little further from the sniffs so I decided to look in the more conventional way.

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It was a grey, drizzly morning which may accentuate the smells,  it can bring sparkle to things you might overlook.

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raindrops on spiderwebs

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and on whiskers of kittens (well caterpillars)

There was an advertising campaign last year or so with the strapline “Be more dog”. I can’t remember what the product was but it’s not a bad way to be.

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from little burns mighty oak trees grow (hmm, maybe that’s not the saying)

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and here’s one which grew earlier

Autumn leaves fall, all things pass;  sometimes I’m happy, sometimes I’m not. Sometimes I fret. But sometimes I can find my inner dog.

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And who could resist that smile?

 

Marina x

Walking

I’ve walked at some pivotal points my life. When I first moved to Edinburgh my Saturday afternoons were often spent walking, exploring the pages of my street map.  Yes I was really living the wild student life.  I noticed that the houses preening from the hillside beyond Morningside road reminded me of home. Even though those ones were large detacheds in Fairmilehead rather than small terraces clinging on the valley.  I plodded about the town,  plotting my routes in coloured inks,  searching in vain for Haymarket Ice Rink;  that book was out of date several years before I found it.   It paid off though, I got to know my adopted city beyond the student and tourist hubs.

It’s Edinburgh Jim, but not as you know it

 

Walking.  Displacement activity,  filling up the day before the  5pm Finals posting   or later walking the night away through  a break up and  I just had to be away from the house.

Walking can be sociable, even when I’m on my own, my (almost) daily walk takes me past friends and gives me a chance to catch up on news. And walking with DogS never fails to make me smile.

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And who could resist that smile?

We have a local walking group too where people and dogs can socialise and explore.

Even if sometimes our feet get so wet there’s no point avoiding the puddles! (The walk which went with the snowy photo).   Walking helps me think, plan, calm down when I need to.

Three different types of walks and walkers have their left footprints recently.

The first,  walking as art  Alexander and Susan Maris’  The Well at the World’s End  a journey from Schiehallion to Iona passed fairly close by,  the second and third  pilgrimages but of different kinds came even closer. Charles Compton walking around the British mainland coastline* raising money for The Mental Health Foundation  arrived in the morning and then after lunch (and my own much shorter walk) the third group, actual  pilgrims walked and waded nearby.

So today, I’ve done my 10,000 steps and been standing a while so I’m giving my stripily suntanned feet a rest.

Marina x

 

 

*including islands linked  by bridges or non tidal causeways

 

 

The little things…..

Today I took my dog to the beach.  Now that is not an unusual thing, but today I tried to do  just that. No ‘phone, no photos, no posting. Just me’n’B, walking, watching , listening. Enjoying her pleasure at simply being there.

My dog smiles. Disclaimer, this is blatant anthropomorphism on my part. She’s a terrier, her mouth is just made like that and anyway she expresses delight from her other end. But her smiley face lifts my spirits.

So back to the beach and maybe at first little MissB is looking for something else too, but I’ve brought no balls so it’s just running and sniffing and maybe digging up some treasure. The tide is low today giving us a lot more beach than last time.   More sand, more seaweed,  more stones;  so many different types of stone;  slate, granite, quartz, smooth, crusted, hairy.   The smooth ones are great for bowling along the sand,  B in hot pursuit.

The splash and sift of the sea on the sand, children’s voices, the thunder of paws – for a small dog she can make quite a din.  It’s a week day, a work day, the children are here on a trip from school, learning to climb the cliffs.   Last time the sun shone, it was a holiday, I filled a big shopper full of rubbish as I walked.  I’d  found the shopper tucked into the rocks.  A couple of tourists joined in, horrified by the mess. There’s a different couple today, taking pictures, enjoying the almost pristine beach, but all that plastic didn’t just end up in my bag.  It’ll visit some other shore.

Just for a moment, banish that thought. Just for a moment, be in the moment.

Having fun, with my dog, on the beach.

 

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PS. Towards the end, I cracked. I took some photos.

PPS. And here’s  B smiling

 

Until next time….

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Catching Up

Yikes! It’s been two months since I posted here, and that was a repost of a blog I follow. It’s not that I haven’t been doing anything,  I’ve had a couple of trips to Edinburgh, one to Glasgow, an overnight stay Clydeside and a visit to friends in Angus.

st cyrus

St Cyrus beach

 

I’ve  had brunches and lunches*,  and supper at MasterStarke’s.

Cat sat and dog walked.

 

Slept in hotel beds and on couches.

bramble at the novotel

DogStarke, hotel inspector**

Enjoyed sun, snow and the bits in between.

 

Read two and two thirds of the Neapolitan Novels, one Anne Enright and an Inspector Montalbano. Watched back to back Gilmore Girls.

Chose Trainspotting2, enjoyed  a musical, directed a play.

Packed boxes, unpacked boxes. Packed them back up again. Picked bathroom fittings.

Put daffs in a vase, looked up through the blossom.

 

Spent evenings surfing not  blogging. Spent tonight blogging not working.

Well, you’ve got to start somewhere.

Marina x

 

 

* Brunch at Montpelier’s, Edinburgh, lunch The Honours, Edinburgh

** DogStarke inspecting duties at Novotel, Edinburgh Centre

 

 

 

 

 

Going back to Mull

Let me set the scene….

Autumn is passing into Winter. Which is lovely, we have crisp, cold mornings, gorgeous sunsets, crunchiness underfoot on our morning walk.

Our renovations are progressing, the old kitchen is gone and the framework for our new extension is progressing well.

Back to that wintry weather…..

The temperature falls below freezing for the first time this year.

This is ok, we have a safety device which cuts off the water supply when this happens, to avoid burst pipes.

This device sits in a cupboard, in the kitchen.  The old kitchen.  Which is no longer there. The cupboard is.  But now it’s now outside the house….

Ooops.

Setting the scene a little bit more. MrS is recuperating from a minor op. Until we can thaw out the frost saver device we have no water in the house. The device also needs new batteries.  Strangely enough the outside tap is working so I busy myself filling buckets and kettles. This cold snap is set to last a few days.

Hmmmm…

A flurry of packing, some phone calls. Off we go.

 

 

It’s dark when we arrive. We settle in have supper and bed down for the night.

Next morning we can see where we are. MrS rests and reads. DogStarke and I explore. Over the next few days MrS gets stronger,  we walk, read, go to the beach. DogS makes friends.

 

 

It’s still cold when we get home. But new batteries, a  hot water bottle and some padding restores the water supply.  We can flush, we can shower. MrS feels better every day.

It’s nice to plan.

It’s good to be home.

But sometimes, spur of the moment is just what you need.

Marina x

We stayed at Treshnish Farm

The beach is Calgary bay.

We travelled to Mull with Calmac Ferries