Today, it has been five years since my mom passed away. I am sad, but feel like everything I do is a tribute to her. I wonder what she would think about certain things, or when I experience certain things that I know would make her laugh. God, I miss that woman, still.
So, I returned home from Scotland, and truly, really did not stop running until after Burning Man...which presented a whole new set of challenges...
The weekend after I got home, or a scant four days, I was on the Playa, doing Ranger training, participating in 4th of Juplaya, and generally, relaxing. To be honest, now that I am writing this the first part of November, I know I was there, I know I had a good time, but I don't remember a ton about the entire experience. I remember sitting through training....I remember eating and hanging with friends, but nothing stands out. This was the first camping trip for our new birdie at the time, Kilo. She got spooked the final day we were there and flew out of the trailer and on to the playa. My sister saved her, ran after her. I remember feeding Keeper, who was in her last trimester of pregnancy, and cooking yummy food.
Then there was a week of work, and final preparations. My son had gotten married in February, but this, July 11th, is what we called "The Pageant"...the formal wedding, the show, the experience for all friends and family. This caused a tad bit of stress. I was just returning from an expensive over-seas trip and my obligation as the bride of the groom was to host and organize the rehearsal dinner.
We had previously talked to Chris' dad (that's another story and series of posts that is on my list to catch-up on at some point...but not now) and his family drove here all the way from Ohio, and they were going to rent a house. They did rent said house, and it was gorgeous! They had spoken of renting a house, and we had approached them with the idea of hosting the rehearsal dinner there, but there was some implication that there might be weirdness surrounding the entire situation, and I didn't want any weirdness, so I had sort of decided to just handle it on my own.
The biggest hurdle with this was money, but with any luck, this would be the only time my son got married, and it was an overall small piece of everything that was done, but when you're hurting, it's hard to see those things, it's just stress! The alleged potential weirdness ended up being nothing, a misunderstanding. When we had asked Chris what he wanted to do for rehearsal dinner, his wish was to BBQ at a house not too far from where we would be at the Lake, grill some dead cow, eat good food, drink, and all hang out and get to know each other. There was bonus family, too. In addition to Chris' dad, Tom, and his wife Melody and their four kids, they brought Tom's mom, his brother and his wife, and their small daughter too. Yay, family! Chris always wanted a large family and that's something I just couldn't really give him, so I am glad he has that with the other part of the family...
So, I got the chance to talk to Melody on the phone, and there was NO weirdness at all, we arranged to buy the bulk of the food, and they agreed to host at this awesome house they had rented. I made a giant batch of potato salad, we did a lot of bread and it was Summer, which screamed tri-tip and plans were laid and made.
In absolute, I REALLY don't think the weekend could have gone better! The rehearsal dinner was exactly what Chris had said he wanted, Tom and Melody were kind enough to offer us space to stay in the house they rented, the wedding was beautiful with a stunning and not-to-be-believed location, everyone was lovely, friendly, loving. This day made me feel blessed on a level that I cannot adequately express. I was SO thankful for EVERYTHING! My colleague and friend Jim was the officiant, my friend Lenae and her cadre of photographer friends took professional photographs, all the family came and was loving and we all had a good time and there was very, very little drama! I adore my new daughter-in-law, it was fantastic to meet her parents and brother and friends, and there was Sake drinking that was fantastic and good times were had by all! It was a win for everyone!
And here are the pics....I don't have them all labeled yet, but I will work on that...might need to consult with some folks to ensure I get all the names right....eeeeek!
I could not have been more proud of my son, my family, my community...this was truly the sort of day that dreams are made of! I only hope that those who participated feel the same!
And I must hit the ground running, as the next several weeks will be very, very busy.
This coming weekend, there's the Playa ROM to attend. Because of other stuff that has been happening, it wasn't possible to attend an earlier ROM, so this will be a good opportunity for Ranger training, we've affectionately dubbed this weekend also as meeting man, and to see good friends not seen for a year.
I will confess that I am actually writing this on October 20, 2011. I left a book mark here for myself because there was lots I wanted to record, not sure if I will remember all of it now....
I remember feeling surreal when I got back. I was glad to be home, to eat familiar food, do familiar things, but also felt my soul and heart screaming NOOOOOOOO! IT CAN'T BE OVER!!!! A very real part of me wanted it to go on forever. I lived a lot inside my head, and that's okay with me. I wanted to imagine and experience what it was like or would have been like. I know with the logical part of my brain that where I live has certainly existed the same amount of time as the UK, but it doesn't have the same sense of history. This hardly ever bothers me, but I appreciate having gotten to see that history, those castles, and experience being there.
After Playa-ROM weekend, the following weekend is my son's wedding. If he had asked me "what's the absolute worst weekend we could have this wedding?" I would have said THAT weekend, but it is what it is and that's when it's happening. Since I am writing this after the fact, it all worked out fine, but there was not a minimal amount of stress in trying to figure this all out. As the parents of the groom, we are, traditionally, to be responsible for travel arrangements for visiting relatives and the rehearsal dinner. Perhaps you haven't noticed, but I am NOT a traditional person! I don't know how to do these things!! Lucky for me, someone, somewhere seemed to sense this, and I didn't have to do any travel arrangements. I think in this sense, I am TOO American. I can't imagine making arrangements for someone else. What an intrusion into someone else's life! I would NEVER presume to know where someone would want to stay, how much they would want to spend, what their requirements are....that whole thing just felt extremely foreign to me because I live my life being radically self-reliant and probably arrogantly so, assuming other people are also.
Two weeks after the wedding is Compression, the fire festival now in it's fourth year.
If I remember correctly, I put this post here to document mi vida loca!
There are only five pictures from my last day or two in Scotland. There are some things I regret, mostly silly things. This last day actually turned in to two days.
The first picture is one of my Scottish groceries. I love oat cakes and some time soon, probably later this winter when I feel like cooking, I will make Scottish oak cakes. Such amazing little rounds of deliciousness! Versatile, and good for you, I think, if made properly. YUM! Milk, cereal, Nutella, Scottish breakfast tea, a banana. I ate well while in Scotland, even when I fed myself!
I think I needed to be out of the hostel by 10 or 11am, I made that with no issues. I knew this was going to be a long day. In essence, my travel day turned in to travel days, as my flight the following morning was supposed to leave at some ungodly hour, so I thought it would be best if I slept in the airport that night, to ensure that I would, in fact, make my flight. I wouldn't actually have minded being stranded in Scotland, but I couldn't do that to my family, who I thought had already sacrificed for me to get the time I had there =) Missing this flight would have cost more money we didn't have.
I had decided at some point that I would spend the money and take a cab into town, but when it came down to it, it was my final moments in Scotland, so I decided to hoof it and spend some final time in Inverness. Of course, this meant I had to lug all my shit all over the place, but I decided to suffer through that. I debated that thought when the brand new super cool bag I had bought for this purpose decided to break apart as I was packing. Pieces of the zipper fell apart, making it impossible to close, which means I had to rearrange things again. Since I had to go back in to Edinburgh anyway, I decided I would head back to that little cheapie store and exchange that stupid bag! I proceeded into Inverness and looked around some more, for the last time. I had wanted to have a meat pie or sausage roll thingie, sort of try Scottish fast food that was unique to that place, but some of the places scared me. I ended up in a sausage shop and found a pretty awesome special for, essentially, a deep fried sausage rolled in some dough. It was good! Good 'ole greasy goodness seems to be pretty universal...I checked the train schedule and waited there awhile, reading a book and watching the people. Very interesting and fascinating past time, that.
The train ride from Inverness to Edinburgh was as stunning as the ride up the first time. The Highland landscape is unique, changes from the Highlands to the Lowlands, and is green, picturesque and seems like the land that time forgot. You can obviously see signs of modernity, but you can also see how little has changed in what seems thousands of years.
Back in Edinburgh, I walked across the bridge and up the hill to exchange my bag. It was a huge relief when it was done! I didn't get any flack from the store employees, it was a straight across trade, I just wanted something not broken to hold my shit, man! I walked around a bit after that, sort of went around the royal mile again, then headed down to the train station. I don't know what it was about this trip into the station, but I got REALLY disoriented and ended up walking around in circles for awhile, then finding out that the bus I needed to get to the airport was outside anyway. I got frustrated!
I got to ride one of those cool double-decker buses and it was a special run to the airport. These were my last glimpses of Scotland that weren't in the airport. Such a lovely place! I hope SO that I can return here some day!
I got to the airport by about 6 or 7pm. While driving on that large bus TO the airport, there was some very large concert taking place and it sort of made me realize how much more efficient other people are than Americans. There was a lot of traffic, yes, but the buses and foot traffic was more much than vehicle traffic. It also made me see that visiting Edinburgh was nice, but it's too large a city for me to live in. Inverness is just about perfect for me =)
I spent the night in the airport. My flight was like, at 6am, so I stayed there because I was TERRIFIED of missing the plane or not being able to access public transportation that would get me there in time for my flight. It wasn't bad, all in all. I spent some time sleeping in the little chapel there. It was quiet in there, it the space seemed to be respectful of all religious paths, not just Christianity. I was pretty delirious by the time it was time to make my way up for my plane. I most regret that I went directly from Belfast into Scotland, so I had this amazing adventure in Scotland, and yet, I have no stamp in my passport to say that I was ever in Scotland. If that's all there is to regret, then I'd say I had a pretty smashing time! Yes, indeed!
I will never forget this trip...and I hope I get to go back some day!
I have to tell you, this has been a chore, recording this vacation. I know that I will be glad once it's done, and that I will have it forever, but it's really hard to label and organize the pics, and remember all the stuff you want to record. By this day, I was pretty tired! I had been invigorated and had an amazing time on the tour with Hugh, but trying to see everything you want to see in a ten day trip means you are perpetually running, running, running. The bottom line is that you will sleep when you get home, you only have so much time to see and do what you want!
So, this day was for me to explore on my own in Inverness. I had contemplated going on another tour up to Loch Ness and doing that whole business, but it would have made money too tight the rest of the trip, and of the places I've been out of my country so far, I've a feeling I've not seen the last of Scotland!
This days pictures start with a detailed view of the hostel where I stayed. It was a new experience for me, but I cannot say enough about the hostel! I am sure they are not all clean and friendly and uncrowded and stuff, but I am so glad I had this experience and it sure was when I was there, so I wanted to let everyone know about it! You hear horror stories about hostels, and there are even horror movies about them, but this was just great!
Then there are pictures of my short walk into the city. I love the architecture here! The houses were so pretty. I even picked out the house I want when I go back to live. Hey, a girl's got to dream! As I came down the hill into the town, going what was sort of a back way thinking about the 'front" of the town being that which faces the train station, and there's this charming little farmers/street market. There are all sorts of people out there selling their wares and displaying things. The first booth that really caught my eye was for a group of people seeking to preserve and help out prey birds. They had three absolutely stunning owls on display. I LOVED the sign that said, in big red letters "BIRDS OF PREY, PLEASE KEEP YOUR DOG AWAY". I thought of several smallish dogs I'd seen and had to take pictures of not only the birds, but the signs and the men that were there. The humor encountered in Ireland and Scotland is constant, and often subtle = )
I HAD to go into the McDonald's I went by, so I could see a menu. I saw it and had to take a picture, so there's also a picture of that...then, Inverness has close's too, which fascinate me, although they do tend to me much shorter and smaller than those in Edinburgh. On to Inverness castle. It's still a working building, so I didn't get to go inside, but it had been recently renovated and it and grounds were gorgeous! As I was walking around the castle, I found something very funny. Right near a circular parapet that looked down on Inverness below is bolted a sign that says "Fire assembly point". Which is great, except that it points to this small, circular alcove that's probably three feet in diameter, then plunges straight down about thirty feet to the pavement below. WTF?!? So, you get out of the building that's on fire....to stand against the way or jump over the side and plunge to your death below?!? This, too, made me giggle. I met a very friendly chap and his wife. They were separated when he talked to me, but he introduced me to her, and he is the one that took the picture of me next to the "fire assembly point". heh. He laughed when I pointed it out to him, too....
The entire time I was in Ireland and Scotland, over ten days at this point, I saw ONE, single solitary paper towel dispenser, and it was in the toilets that are between the castle at Inverness and the Inverness museum. All the other bathrooms I had encountered had those dyson blow yer hands thingies. So, it warranted a picture.
The Inverness museum was really neat. It had a lot of interactivity in it, with things you could touch and feel to get a sense of the history. I LOVE stuff like this! Things from the Bronze Age, the Picts, rudimentary tools, stuff on Gaelic language, all sorts of things for kids. It was really neat to root around in there. I walked down to the river, saw some churches along there, went into a couple of whiskey and other shops, saw the tourist trappy ones, and yet, appreciated that they were there. I went up a street to a graveyard that seemed to be the graveyard of Frasers! It seemed to me that at least a third of this graveyard had Fraser family members....who knew?
I encountered the most awesome book store ever. Called Leakey's Second Hand Book Shop, it struck me as EXACTLY the way a book shop should look. It's in a building that was formerly a church, and it is LITERALLY books and nothing but books, floor to ceiling, stacked anywhere there is a spare space, with a desk and stove in the center, and one of the former church lofts is a small cafe'. I had soup here that was amazing, they also serve pies and deserts...and tea, of course. One of my favorite places in Inverness, for sure. I could have gotten lost in there for HOURS! It actually reminded me of the Trinity University in Dublin where they have the Book of Kells. There is a room of floor to ceiling books there. The same sort of reverence for knowledge is felt in Leakey's. Seriously.
While I was wandering around the the graveyard, I went around a corner and saw two homeless men, enjoying the sunshine and probably enjoying not being harassed. They both appeared to be sleeping. No matter how touristy the town, every place has people that are less fortunate, and this was a poignant reminder.
I made my way back to the hostel as the sun dipped lower in the sky. The houses were just as beautiful on the way back. I spent my last evening writing, catching up, repacking, thinking about the journey home and tomorrow, catching up on email, putting out fires back home, and mourning with a deep and melancholy sadness that my time was coming to an end. When I went to France, I experienced it knowing I would likely never go back. With Scotland, it's more like "Until we meet again, my friend...." Call it a hunch....
I am a giant nerd. I may have mentioned before that there is a series of books that I absolutely adore. For most of my life, I have been a vociferous reader, and I have NEVER been someone who could reread books. If I've read it, that's it, I am done. But this series of books, written by Diana Gabaldon, called the Outlander Series, features Scotland, and specifically the Highlands, throughout much of the books, especially the first few. These books are what made me want to come to Scotland. Anyone else who's ever fell in love with these books and these characters understands what I mean. We are a devoted lot, and we harangue poor Dianna mercilessly for the next book as soon as another is published =) These books are A-MAZING! When I knew I would be going, but only to Edinburgh, I could not be THAT close, and not see or experience the Highlands.
So way back when I decided I wanted to go on this trip, I knew I was going to deviate from the rest of those going and take a Highland adventure by myself. I didn't just want a "Highland" adventure though, I wanted an adventure that would take me to the places mentioned in the book...and I wanted to be shown these things by someone who had read at least some of the books. Being a good geek, I googled "Outlander Tours", and "Diana Gabaldon Scotland Tour" and "Jamie and Claire Tour" to see what would come up. I found a lot of really cool tours, but knew most of them were out of my price range, as this was going to occur at the end of an already expensive almost two week trip and there was no way I'd be able to eek out another few thousand dollars for another multi-day tour. Enter InvernessTours.com. They had a one day, reasonably priced Gabaldon tour by guides who were from the area. Way back when I was planning all this, because I booked my tour so far in advance, I also got a discount for pre-paying AND, they would see if they could help me sell the rest of the seats on the tour! This actually did happen, and they refunded some of my money, because you have to pay for a six-person capacity tour, even if it's only you. Paying for the guides time and all that, which I completely understand....so here's a link to a sample tour like the one I took, HERE.
All the planning, working two and three jobs, everything up to this point had led me to this moment in time. It was FINALLY going to happen, after a year of waiting, anticipation, worry that it wouldn't happen, worry about money, worry about being by myself, guilt over spending the money, tired feet from working all the time, but by God, NOW was my time! I think I must have gotten myself up at about 6am. It wouldn't do to be late for my guide, that's just inconsiderate. I showered, had my authentic Scottish breakfast in the Scottish hostel of Scottish breakfast team, oat cakes and Nutella, a banana, and some cereal. Then I headed outside probably fifteen minutes early at least, to wait for the guide, after checking my email about half a dozen times since I'd gotten to the hostel to make sure nothing could mess the day up, that I had the time right, and it was REALLY time. Squee!
Our guide's name was Hugh, and he greeted me with the two other people who had bought into my tour. They were a very nice couple from Australia named Eileen and Herbert. I found out later that Eileen has cancer and is not expected to live, so this is one of the things she wanted to do before her time was up. Man, talk about some heavy! I discovered that throughout the day. Hugh had this really cute little blue car that fit four very comfortably. He was also in full regalia, kilt, vest, looking like the Highlander he is, and it was awesome!
It was odd to be the front passenger. All the rest of our motor travel in the UK had been in a giant bus, so this was the first time I'd been in a passenger car besides the short cab ride and it was interesting sitting on the side which is the drivers side in the US. We were off ahead of schedule and headed into the wilds of the Highlands. I was just hoping at this point I didn't do anything to embarrass myself being a geeky fan girl...
I didn't think it was possible for me to fall more in love with Scotland, the Highlands, or getting to be there, but I was so, so wrong! Our first journey was to drive through Inverness and to the Clava Cairns. The drive there was stunning. As we first left the main road and started to drive winding sort of back country roads, we looked down a particular road and were gifted with getting to see two red deer walking down a dirt path! Hugh, our guide seemed to think this was exceptional good luck! To me, it was a harbinger that this was to be a day of excellent memories and good times =)
We passed this amazing red brick viaduct or domed bridge thingie that I think I road on the top of when I was taking the train to Inverness. Very pretty. As we head towards the Cairns, I click more pictures at just how different and wild things seem here. That this place has such an amazing sense of history, and yet, things have remained, is amazing. We drive by a wall that is of indeterminate age, crumbled, with sticks jutting out from it, plants growing through it, the wild trying to reclaim things, but you can see that it was once a rock wall...
The Cairn's themselves are heavy with the history they contain. There's an aura of mystery about them, as you walk around them and try to understand how they were used, what they were used for, and how people thousands of years ago wanted to ease the transition their loved ones encountered as they moved to the next phase of existence....I ADORE knowing that the celebratory and reverential aspect of these stone circles are based on the cycles of sun and moon.
Next was the drive to Culloden. The drive itself was gorgeous. I am glad there was someone TO drive. Although I am pretty confident of my ability to navigate by GPS, it was incredibly convenient and an awesome thing to have someone who knows the area so well driving us, because I don't know if I could have done a fraction as well, driving on the opposite side of the street in addition to being in a different country. This knowledge was not wasted on me, and I was thankful for what we had =)
Culloden was one of the greatest experiences and one of my favorite museums we visited. A whole lot of thought went into the construction of things, presenting the different viewpoints, and giving proper gravity to what occurred here and the ramifications it has had on the history of Scotland. I would recommend this as a must see to anyone visiting the Highlands!
There is this thing called the "immersion chamber" in the museum. It says on the outside that persons with heart conditions or of a nervous nature should not go into the room. Forewarned, there was no way I wasn't going in. I am one of those people who believes that it's an obligation to learn about and know of things like Culloden. Knowing history and having it come alive for you is important. Maybe it helps us prevent future mistakes, maybe it's just to honor those killed so that someone knows their story, but for me, this was obligatory. When the experience in the chamber begins, you can feel a cool breeze around you, moving your hair, and on all sides, the room has a projection of the battlefield. You can see the grasses moving in the wind, you can experience what it might have felt like. Around you, as you are standing in the middle of the room, the Battle at Culloden is played out before you. I am not a huge fan of violence and war to begin with, even typing this months later, I still cry at the viscreal, gutteral reaction I had to experiencing that for myself. I cried for the experience, to honor those who died, the way of life that died that day, and for the fact that before picking up a novel a few years ago, I knew nothing of this thing that happened that had such a huge impact on the world. They actually asked me if I needed to leave the room but I stayed. No matter what I experienced, it was paltry next to those who were there...
Then we walked the battlefield. Seeing the impossible scale of things is important I think. Seeing diagrams in a book or seeing charts hung on a wall isn't the same thing as standing along an impossibly long line of red flags and being able to barely see the impossible line of blue flags, barely discernible when standing next to the red ones. And yet....I am sure as men stood on opposite lines on these fields, they knew what was coming. Perhaps not the outcome, but that something momentous was surely happening. Seeing the clan stones took my breath away. Stones for English as well as Scottish.
There's a guy I know in Reno, with whom I have volunteered the last few years at our local Celtic Celebration. His name is Willie. He belongs to Clan Donald, and our local area has a chapter for this clan, in which he is very involved. I felt like I couldn't be there, when I saw the sign that said "Clan Donald" and not honor my friend by visiting his clan space and recording it for him. I was advised by Hugh that it was quite a hike, but I asked them to carry on and I would catch them back at the museum, as this was important to me. Make the trek, I did...alone with my thoughts and wondering what travels lead a family from that battlefield to have a clan member in Reno, Nevada 265 years later. It was a heavy and heady experience. Walking along the moor gave me a particular appreciation for the battle that was captured by Diana Gabaldon when she wrote of Culloden in her book(s) too. I think until you go there, you cannot fully appreciate how treacherous the landscape is. The marsh has small pools of standing water that are all over the place. These are really holes all along the landscape and I know there are parts where Diana describes how Highlanders seem to have a sixth sense about traversing this terrain, but for anyone not used to it, twisted ankles, close encounters with the ground, sopping socks and shoes, it's very easy to see how this could all come to pass...and yet ruggedly beautiful.
I wanted something special from here, so in the gift shop, I discovered Heather stones, and I bought the book that is the companion book, about Culloden. I have a Heather Stone for myself, and I will refashion it into something else. I LOVE it, and nothing says "Highlands" to me like this enterprising endeavor to exist using what one has. Leaving Culloden, I felt emotionally hung-over, wondering what was next...
"Next" happened to be lunch. We drove for a bit, which was a relief to me, to give me time to compose myself. I seriously felt like I could have spent a lot of time sobbing on that battlefield, mourning all that was lost there. The scenery across bridges and skirting around bodies of water, was stunning. I spent my entire time acknowledging how blessed I felt to be there, to get to be seeing this stuff, to be in the center of this place and experiencing this day.
Lunch was this amazing place in the Northern Highlands, according to the map, called Ferann-Domhnuill. There was a little shop at the front, then another room off to the side where they had set up a lunch counter with sandwiches and hot food and such. The food was very good. I had a stew type thing that was very good, came with bread and veggies, was hot and delicious. There was this clear tent thing that provided cover for an outside patio area where we sat. It was right along the water and the tide was out. What an experience! Hugh had mentioned to us earlier that if we were interested (who wouldn't be if you are ANY sort of history buff) that he had written a book called "Culloden Tales" about the battlefield, it's history before and after Culloden, what led up to the battle, and stories he was gifted with during his tenure at the visitors center at Culloden. We were able to purchase books FROM him, and he signed them for us. This made my little geek heart go "Squeeee!"
Attached to this restaurant is a Storehouse that dates from the time of Jamie and Claire, the information said it was completed in about 1740. There was an entire exhibition setup inside. In one way, it was kind of creepy because it was like, there were posed mannequins in clothing, mimicking the actions that would have occurred when the space was a working space, and it was creepy in that wax-museum, fake person sort of way, but there is no denying the display itself was incredibly detailed, very cool, held a TON of information, and represented well that area of the Highlands.
There was information in there about what a Storehouse is, how they came to be, what this one was called, and how the clan that restored it (Munro, I believe) evolved and lived. There was a timeline that went from 1000A.D to the 1980's, information on neighboring clans, what the clan system was, samples of neighboring clan tartans, and specific information about the Monro's going to present day. I'd never seen anything like this! The walls on this structure were probably two feet thick. It was like stepping back into the past.
Then, we drove near to what could have been Castle Leod. I am actually glad I didn't pay to meet the current titled dude who lives there and have tea with him. I mean, not to be crass, but he means nothing to me, we got to see the Storehouse instead, which was much more broadly based, and we got to have tea at Lallybroch, so although it would have been cool to see the inside of the castle, I think the day progressed perfectly just the way it went =)
After lunch, as we were on our way to our next destination, we passed a small water wheel that would have been the type of which Jamie swam under during the first book of Outlander. This one looked small to me, and it reminded me of a water wheel in Washington that looks just like this to me on the Hood Canal, but it's lovely, regardless.
At this point, Hugh asked us if we would like to see landscape and scenery like that which would have existed during Jamie and Claire's time and I was all about that! He said he knew a place that was lovely, and we quickly agreed and were not disappointed! We headed to Rogie Falls. Hugh said there had been some trail development since he'd last been there, and in fact, the trail was diverted along a different path than the one it looks like folks originally followed. Since the health of those with us was such that we needed to take it nice and slow, we did so, but I think that just enhanced the experience! The rope bridge that went across the river was exhilarating and scary at the same time! There's a large sign at the entrance to the bridge that says no more than five people should be on the bridge at the same time due to weight limits. I walked across, but didn't go completely to the other side. I was okay with that. When we arrived, here was another group on the bridge, but everything we attended was thankfully blissfully uncrowded. We didn't encounter that many people and when we did, they were not throngs, merely individuals or very small groups, similar to ours. The falls were a lovely time and on the way back, we found a rock that could have held the cave Jamie hid in after Culloden. I know it's fanciful and dumb to be so enamored of these books and to look for these things, but I am. Eh. As we walked back, closer to the original path Hugh had told us was the original, he said the foliage was much closer to what it would have been like in the 18th century. The pine that exists now is not native to Scotland, but was brought in later. Although still stunningly sublime, it was very nice to see ferns, undergrowth and what things might actually have looked like during the 18th century. The river that creates the Falls is called the Blackwater River and it surely is. Hugh says the peat causes the river to be a greenish brown earthy color, but I told him I thought Scotland really was the promised land, as they had rivers of ale cascading over the rocks! He laughed, and we never got close enough to taste if it was beer or water, but it was probably water, shucks!
When we left and headed for our next destination, we crossed a valley that Hugh shared with us flooded when the river breached its banks. He stopped near a tree and showed us the spot where his friend had had the wherewithal to mark the highest point of the river the last time it flooded. That picture is in the mix and WOW! It was high!
As our day began to come to a close, on the way to our Lallybroch tea, we passed a whiskey distillery and as this was going to be my only chance to see one, Hugh was kind enough to stop, so we could see the ginormous copper kettles and the dark, smoky carbon particles that leave a sooty residue on the buildings as part of the distillation process.
I mentioned to Hugh at some point that I had seen Highland cattle before, but not since I'd been in Scotland and seeing a Heilan Coo very much appealed to me. He said we'd keep an eye out for them, and we peaked a glimpse of some on the side of the road as we were on our way to Lallybroch. Down a windy, dirt road, we came to a small inn that is like what Lallybroch would have been. I know people were smaller in the 18th century, but the doors on the farmhouse were seriously midgety, low to the ground. The house is much bigger than I thought it was, but then, in a recent reread of Outlander, it seems about right. We didn't get to see the entire house, we were mostly relegated to the front two rooms, but it was enough. When we arrived, the hostess was ready for us and I got to have Tea! I don't know what I expected, I guess maybe I didn't dwell too much on it because it's not something that's part of my culture. We sat, a small porcelain tea pot and sweets like pastries, cookies and peanut butter bars were offered around and we were to drink tea. This tickled me beyond belief! It was somewhat discomfiting because I had been going so long by this point, I am not generally one who sits still a lot, so like, taking the time to relax....enjoy the scenery.....chat about Lallybroch, our day, sip our tea, eat pasties seemed like the height of decadence to me! After we had mostly finished, Hugh brought out the special surprise! He had period weapons from 18th century Scotland and he wanted to show us. Can I just say, a DIRK is friggin' HUGE!! I guess in my brain, because I'd seen it described as a large knife, I was thinking knife size. Seeing one, I was thinking, "THAT'S A SHORT SWORD!!" It never ceases to fascinate and appall me the interesting and painful ways humans find to inflict grievous bodily harm on each other. The notches in the dirk, designed to inflict the most damage, and the channels in the center of the blade designed to avoid creating suction once it's been embedded IN A BODY, so it can be removed easily....these are not things I think about. The real sort is much longer, but surprisingly light, and the sgian dubh actually really does seem like a smallish knife. The targ, which is a shield, is ingenious in it's protective capability, and also with how they learned to hold the dirk AND the sword to be a more efficient killing machine. I am glad I live now and have the luxury of being a hippy =) These things horrify me, generally, but they were fun to play with. He also had a pistol with amazing scroll work engraved into the silver handle and barrel of the gun. I admire Hugh's willingness to share these things with us, and his generosity in sharing his knowledge with us.
We also saw the front room where Jamie would have been taken after Laoghaire shot him. It all seemed surreal because I couldn't believe I was there. The Inn has it's original stone entryway and flooring in the hallway, and the original kitchen area, which we saw from a distance. It was fairy tale like in it's quaintness...
Alas, it was time to leave and it started to wear on all of us, I think that this had been a looooong day, but fun-filled and amazing! After we left Lallybroch, I did indeed get to see my Heilan coo!! Yay! I think they are so cute and furry, but I know if I ever had one, I probably wouldn't be able to eat it because it would become my friend. I could buy non-factory farmed meat from them, though...as long as I didn't have to know, feed, or care for the cow in question =)
One of our last stops was Beauly Priory. Interesting place, this. Crypts, interesting Gabaldon-esque graves, lovely reddish stone, and you can still see the marks of carbon from fire when the roof was burned down. We wandered around here for a bit, then headed to the tartan store! Our last stop of the day was at Campbell & Co., where we met the very charming proprietors and saw the most extensive collection of tartan, on bolts, that *I* had ever seen. That's really not saying much, as I generally don't shop for tartan, but still, it was stunning =)
The drive back into Inverness and then to drop of Herbert and Eileen and finally myself, was quiet, but filled with companionable chatter and learning those last few facts I've probably already forgotten. Important stuff I wrote down, and it's in my Scotland stuff, which I've loaned to a friend who's also a fan of Diana's books, Jamie and Claire, and who I've promised at some point, we will go back together and possibly stay in a haunted castle....another item for the bucket list!
Doing things to take them off your bucket list is quite the experience. On one hand, you are trying SO hard to embed everything into your consciousness, because you don't want to forget a single moment, sensation, experience, smell, taste, or event. The reality is that our brains don't work that way =) I will say that this day was definitely in my top ten in my life. Thank you to Hugh and my traveling companions Herbert and Eileen. I will never forget you, or the day I got to spend touring the Highlands, being at Culloden, and seeing places like those that might have been experienced by my favorite couple, Jamie and Claire!
Today is the day I begin the rest of my adventure...by myself! Although I was sad to see all my friends and my companions leave, I wasn't sad enough to get up at 3am and see them off, and as sad as I was, I was also excited because I DIDN'T HAVE TO GO HOME YET!! Yay, me!
MY ninth day seemed like the beginning of the adventure of a lifetime! I got up at my leisure and then proceeded to demonstrate to myself how resourceful I was...The day before, I had made myself a roll with some ham in it as a later snack to see if anyone would notice, and today, the hunter/gatherer phase of the trip was for real...I had 3 more days to spend in Scotland and we were entering the extreme low-budget, all on my own portion of the trip, so it was completely necessary to cut corners where I could. From the breakfast bar, I stashed away one banana for each remaining day, another ham sandwich (which would be a bacon sandwish to these folks, all I know is that it was pork product and it was delicious!), various fruits, some nutella packages, condiments, and whatever else seemed like a good idea at the time =) The rest I would augment later...
Next, I went down to a little bargain store, the kind of which take the form here at home of, like Big Lots, not quite a dollar store, but definitely not high quality stuff. My goal was to buy a bad large enough to carry the things I had thusfar bought, in addition to whatever else I might buy, preferably either on wheels, or with a shoulder strap or put together in a way that I could easily carry it with the other stuff that I had to carry. The next dilemma was to figure out if I could walk to the train station, or if I should splurge for a cab. I had previously walked to the station, but wasn't sure how it would work with luggage, then decided I was going to find out, proclaiming the motto "that which doesn't kill me makes me stronger" as I went. In all honesty, it wasn't a trial at all to get down the hill to the train station. I figured I'm smart and resourceful, I can do this! It was raining off and on, but that had rather been a constant from the beginning of the trip. The rain never bothered me, I had the coolest rain coat EVAH!
I hauled my considerable crap to the train station, found the appropriate train to Inverness, and said down to read for awhile. It was a pleasant wait. The train station was dark, but had lots of glass to let in what light was available. There might be train stations like that on the east coast, but I'm pretty sure I've never seen a train station like THIS on the west coast. I've been to bart stations before, and those are sort of the the same as far as the tracks go, but the age of things in Europe, I do not believe can be rivaled in our corner of the world. Because of this, it also seems that many things in Edinburgh and around, almost always seem to be in some varying stage of remodel, repair, updating or maintenance. It's interesting to me how people just continue about their business and walk around the barricades, over the puddles, and in front of the cars to get where they are going =)
The train ride was pleasant. The seats are generally comfortable, they have these cute little carts like airline carts, but made from the train. This was such a novelty to me, I bought a bag of chips from the guy just to say I had =) I cannot accurately explain the absolute beauty of the Scottish countryside. It changes as you move into the Highlands, but ALL of it is stunning!
When I arrived in Inverness, that was probably my lowest point, and the point at which I really wondered if I could do this alone traveling thing while at the same time realizing that I had precious little choice about any of it. In the end, there was simply no choice but to pull myself up by my boot straps and find out where the fuck I was, where the fuck I was going, how the fuck to get there, and not kill myself with 150lbs of luggage anywhere along the way =)
I wandered around in circles for a good, long while. This is the point at which "alone" came home to me. I looked weird, with my braids that most of these folks assume are worn only by black people, so no one was going to approach or talk to me willingly. I couldn't find a map of Inverness that seemed easy to read that I could orient myself too. I walked down to the bus station, but couldn't make out which buses went where in relation to where I was staying at the hostel, then turned around and went back towards the train station. I got frustrated. I hemmed and hawed. I ALMOST cried, but I didn't do it.
I gave in. My goal had been to be completely independent, but in the end, I spent the money and took a cab to the hostel. I am actually glad I did, because I don't think I ever would have found it otherwise! I am glad I chose the hostel that I did because, as noisy as it was, I think it was MUCH more quiet than the one that was smack dab in the center of town, that I passed by later that day...
From moment one, I loved the hostel. I was placed on the second floor. I bought internet time, got my key, and was thankful to be what would be my home for the next few days. I made my way to my room and although it had two beds, there was no one else in there with me, for which I was thankful several times during my stay. I asked if the hostel had previously been a camp, or a school, which is my impression of American hostels, but the lady told me that, in fact, this had been built as a hostel, and it was easy to see that.
It was still early in the day by the time I was mostly settled, so it was time to decide what to do. In exploring the hostel, I discovered....LAUNDRY FACILITIES!! I actually packed VERY light for this trip, compared to my Paris trip, but I was still looking at over a week with the same clothes. The prospect of clean clothes was VERY appealing. It was also early afternoon, so seemed like a likely time that the facilities might be free. I bought my soap disks, which looked ALMOST like urinal cakes, but smelled better =) I got my stuff washing, looked around, and read for a bit. Communal bathroom not my favorite, but the hostel didn't seem anywhere NEAR capacity, so waiting a moment or two was tops for my time there, and it seemed reasonably clean.
After laundry, there were some items that still needed to dry, so I went up to my room and draped them all over the furniture to ensure everything would dry. It was nice to smell everything clean, though! At this point, I wanted to head in to town to buy more food and have dinner before it got too dark. I had been brought to the hostel on a major street, so figured if I stayed to that, I could be fine. I should mention here that while I had done my laundry and gotten settled in the hostel, at some point in the afternoon, it had begun to rain. Rain has never bothered me, so I thought "there's nothing for it, it has to be done," donned my little blue rain jacket and began my walk! I walked to the Center of Inverness and loved the little town. Now it was getting on to dinner time, maybe 6 or 7 at night, and it seemed that most things were closed. The shops and such were open, but there weren't a huge number of people milling about. I walked down some of the side streets, trying to familiarize myself with things. I asked a couple of locals for a suggestion on a good place to eat, and they recommended a pub. At this point, I was somewhat stymied because I passed many restaurants, but nothing I saw on the menu's sounded good. I was afraid to eat any sort of ethnic food except for Indian. I passed an Indian restaurant coming in to town, but have a thing about stopping the first place you see =)
I ended up in the pub, and ordered Haggis! I was determined to try it while in the Highlands, and this seemed like the perfect time. When I asked the waitress for her recommendation, that's what it was, so I figured "What the hell?" It was REALLY good! I thoroughly enjoyed my meal, and then walked back towards the hostel, but stopped in a grocery store to get basic supplies for two meals a day, figuring I would eat one to two meals of my own, then eat dinners out. Seemed like a good plan =)
The grocery store was interesting. There probably wasn't, but it seemed like there was a huge amount of prepared food. Salads, and I mean green salads and different food salads like orzo salad, which I got some of, pasta salads, just different types of food. It's strange to me that hardly anything in the UK that I saw is sold by weight. In the US EVERYTHING is by weight, but there it seemed to be by individual item. I think that's probably more realistic =) So, I managed to get food for two or three days for less than 10 pounds, which I thought was pretty good. This included basically eating out once a day and eating the other two meals at the hostel. Of course, with my scores from the lovely hotel in Edinburgh =)
It was a little bulky getting everything in my backpack, but I managed, which was awesome. Now it was dark and still raining, and I decided to head back to the hostel. I walked back by the same route I had come down on. I had a suspicion there was a much nicer way to walk, but after our experience in France, where we turned up a side street and got impossibly lost, I didn't want to have that experience by myself, in the dark and rain in Inverness. I did find the better route the next day in the daylight though, and it was lovely!
Sleep that night was somewhat elusive. I was excited, I was by myself, but apparently, the Inverness hostel also rents to elephants, as it appears they were square dancing above me throughout the night. At some point, though, I believe exhaustion won out and I drifted off to the sleep of someone about to continue her adventure of a lifetime....
Ahhh, day eight. This was a REALLY low-key day for me. This was to be our last full day in Edingburgh, and I needed to save money, so I chose to pretty much spend the day by myself, until dinner time. It was good for me. By this time, I was used to being with people all the time, but knew that as of the next day, I was going to be on my own, so this was my attempt to make a go of it, be self-sufficient, and imagine what it might be like when it was JUST me in a foreign country. To be honest, I was a little freaked out about it. This was only my second overseas trip period, and would be the first time I would be by myself.
I walked down to the Sir Walter Scott memorial, walked around. I wasn't feeling great. My feet were hurting and I was feeling a tad under the weather after so many days of traveling and restaurant food. I was just sort of feeling blah. The day, however, was beautiful! I got to see the Princes, underground Mall, see pay toilets that really sort of bummed me out. Wow, it was like, a pound (which is $2, almost) to pee? Really?!? I spent time organizing my stuff, sorting through all the treasures I'd acquired to date, walked all around our area of the Royal Mile, went down any street I hadn't previously been down, and just hung around. Some of the window paintings in my pictures HAD to be captured on film! Steroids? Is that such a big concern in Scotland?!? Just the frankness of the windows made me giggle and I thought to myself "No one will ever believe these windows said these things if I don't take a picture...." So I did =)
We all met back for dinner, and this is when things REALLY started to go my way. Some members of our group had ended up buying like, a three month train pass because it actually worked out to be cheaper than buying a one day pass. They went up to Inverness and took a tour the day I had my lazy day, and I was going to Inverness. Someone told me about the tickets, and said they were just going to offer them to local people so they wouldn't go to waste. I offered to pay, but the family was gracious enough to give me the train pass, so I had my transportation from Edinburgh to Inverness and back again taken care, nicely, and for free. Yay, me! It was very, very cool of those folks to help me out!
We ate at this place about a block from our hotel, for dinner. They seemed, like, maybe not so much prepared for such a large party. This was my first opportunity to try haggis. One of our appetizer options was deep fried haggis bites. I was dubious at best, but figured just about everything tastes good fried right?! They were okay...they were served with a sweetish dipping sauce that made them more palatable. I think all of us were served fish and chips, and this time, the breading was much thicker. Several people did not care for the food here, but I thought it was good, if quite heavy.
After dinner, we walked down to what became one of the most hysterical memories of the trip. There is no way I will be able to accurately express the hilarity of the acting team that did our Edinburgh ghost tour. These guys were so funny, and at the same time, you were almost laughing AT them because they were just SO ridiculous. It was a good, fun time, though. They tried to scare us. Sometimes they were successful, sometimes they were ridiculous, but they were ALWAYS entertaining!
Everyone pretty much went to bed early this night because they all had to be up early to catch the plane in the morning...and I was going to venture off the to the rest of my adventure!
Day 7 dawned and I was looking forward to our first full day in Scotland! I spent much of my time here feeling very surreal and at the same time thinking to myself "I can't believe I'm here, I can't believe I'm here...". Seriously!
We got up early and ate breakfast. They had good stuff at this breakfast...the same general fare as we got all along, but this was a nice, cheery room and there were lots of opportunities to take snacks for later, which was awesome and will come into play later...
As we met for breakfast, the evening before, I had caught some news and after we left Belfast, there was some more rioting that took place and some violence with cars being damaged, explosions in the street, and I think a photographer injured. From the news reports, it seemed to be Protestant-centered. I know that our perspective was perhaps tainted because the guide we had was Catholic, and I was raised Catholic (kind of, but not staunchly, never confirmed and just with the vaguest of stuff my mom couldn't help) and I really don't think it's a Catholic bias towards, but it does seem to me that the Catholics want peace and the Protestants won't let things go or heal. That's how it looked from an outside point of view...
Chris, our tour leader, even teased me that it was because of our tour and our Catholic guide that took us around and WE had caused the international incident. He was giving me a bad time and it made me giggle. heh.
To being our day, we headed towards Holyrood Palace. This is the Summer palace of the current English monarch, and although we were there in June, the palace was already prepared for the Queen's arrival. The formal dining room was set with the Silver, and we could see preparations taking place all over. In some ways, when looking at old and historical stuff, it all looks so opulent and ostentatious, it's hard to believe that single families can live in such extreme excess. But when you look at, like, the actual beds and stuff, one has to wonder about those. They seem small, to me. I wonder how many monarchs have felt trapped throughout their lives. I'd hate to be that sort of public figure and never have any privacy....although I think before mass media came into being it was much easier to still have privacy. Anyway, there's that train of thought derailed....
The first picture in the series was a cool shot, I thought. A dignified and metropolitan looking man walking through these amazing old arch ways. Was just sort of a "clash of the centuries" picture =)
I also took a pic of one of the staff because I thought their little outfits were cute! I'm not sure I had seen plaid pants like that before. There's this elaborate fountain in the outer courtyard of the palace that's very pretty, and the green grass on the inner courtyard where you walk through to get into the palace had the greenest lawn I think I've ever seen! Maybe it just looks that way because of the contrast between the inside gray brick color and the green, but gorgeous all the same.
One cannot take pictures inside the palace, which is okay with me. I have no issues paying five pound for the official book that has better pictures than I could possibly take anyway. I learned that in France =) I did meet a very nice boy, though, in one of the rooms. There was a lovely view of the Abbey ruins from one bedroom window and I didn't want to get in trouble, so I told the employee "I totally get not taking pictures inside, but can I take a picture of outside FROM inside?" He said sure and came over and actually opened the window up for us so that we wouldn't have a blurry picture through the glass of the window. I thought that was very sweet.
The castle was cool, no doubt. The Abbey was awesome. There are pictures of that =) I bought the book, but you can find really cool pictures online too, I am sure. It was a great experience, being there. There was a path going into the gardens, on the grounds, and we walked the path, which snakes back around the Abbey, too. Truly beautiful and amazing. One could imagine strolling through the gardens...
On the way back, I took pics of some of the little tourist trap stores along the way. "I (heart) Edinburgh" and "Pride of Edinburgh". We also passed by some closes, and the Tolbooth, which was a prison back in the day. I've read more than a few novels where portions of them were held there. It was exciting to see it! Now there's a tavern right there. I was tempted to raise a pint to all those who had ever been through the doors (of the jail, that is)!
We saw this interesting phenomena in Scotland, even moreso than Ireland. Let me preface this by saying that I DO understand that I live in a desert and that generally, we don't worry about rain here. At all. BUT, we do teach our children not to play with plastic bags, that they can strangle themselves with plastic bags. In Scotland, they PUT their children, AND their strollers, IN plastic bags. This amused me so much, I asked this couple if I could take a picture of their cute baby. They looked at me weird and said "Sure." I was snapping the bag they had the kid in =)
I tried many times to take a picture of the Elephant House, where Harry Potter was written...what resulted was the clearest one I got, which is pretty sad. My search for Carfax Close ended this day, but I just couldn't seem to stop myself from continuing to take pictures of the cool closes I found, though. This one will always be special in my heart, though =) "Fleshmarket Close" came in a "close" second, though. hahaha, I kill me.
I will have to look back through my itinerary. I don't have any more pictures from this day, I don't remember where we ate, going to have to go back and see what we did. Will update later =)
This morning, as I type this on August 24, biding my time until I can go to a different kind of "home", I contemplate how different places feel like "home" or have that sense about them. I adored Ireland. I learned a lot, the country was lovely, the castles were awesome, the people were funny and engaging and very nice. But I would be lying if I didn't say that, for me, the goal of this entire thing was getting to Scotland. This was that day on the trip.
I had previously missed that there was a timeline going up the spiral staircase, that contained the history of the Europa hotel. We found out at the end of the stay that the Europa is in the Guiness Book of World Records...as the most BOMBED building in the world. Nice. Sort of glad we found that out at the END of the trip =)
At any rate, the first pictures are the interesting bits I thought, of the timeline going up the staircase at the Europa. This was taken VERY early morning, while there was some confusion about whether or not we had boxed breakfast things to take to the airport. We ended up not really having anything to eat. They told us to go, if we wanted coffee and fruit, but apparently, the hotel had made our boxed breakfasts...the week before, so there were none to be had on this day. I passed on the trying to scrounge for food, and decided I'd just eat when I could. I also didn't really want to be swishing coffee around while the bus was lumbering side-to-side.
I think I was most impressed with security at the Belfast airport, go figure. They take things VERY seriously there. I hadn't even realized or been called on such things, but I was forced to get a detailed bag search after I neglectfully did not remove a tube of lipstick, hand sanitizer, some makeup powdery stuff, lip stain, and hand lotion. I am a bad traveler...but I sure wasn't alone. It was actually kind of scary and these folks weren't messing around. They were militaristic and non-smiling, fairly seething menace...
The flight was uneventful, and we arrived in Edinburgh. SQUEEE, the point of the entire trip! SCOTLAND!! The first place we stopped was Calton Hill and Observatory. It was really beautiful there! We got to see old stone walls that were stunning, climbed steep ramps and stairs, but the breathtaking view at the top was worth every single step. Gorgeous, tall columns, and a view of all Edinburgh that was to die for! This mountain that you can see from most places in Edinburgh, I know I have pictures of it from several different places throughout the city. It's green and lush and just looks majestic.
We drove around getting from the airport to our hotel, ON the Royal Mile. Man, we were lucky. We passed interesting things, more examples of Georgian architecture, and other examples. LOVED the red stone some of the buildings had. I was struck by how DIRTY the buildings were. I know it's a city, but dang....everything, beautiful buildings and such historic significance, and they were just dingy.
Once we got checked in to the hotel and settled, it was time to EAT! Then we went on a short walk. A picture I took walking down the street was of another mime. He was okay, but not as engaging or as, umm, startling as the mime in Dublin. I find it interesting that the first one was, bronze, I think, and this one was silver. This one, not as meticulous in his presentation, check out his socks....slight dark red poking through that silver, guy =)
First we saw a lovely little courtyard, and, and got to visit St. Giles Cathedral. Not being a religious person, I could appreciate the style and intricacy of design in the church, the history contained therein, the flags, and all the pretty stained glass, but it did not hold spiritual significance for me. I did light a candle for my parents. My mom would have liked that and while I am not sure my dad would have cared, I think he would have appreciated the thought =)
Then, it was time to walk to Edinburgh Castle. This was a very cool place. It's at the top of the City, so you can see it from almost anywhere in the City. We were lucky and unlucky, as when we walked across the bridge to get there, they were already setting up the bleachers and such for the annual Scottish Military Tattoo. This is a competition of piping and other military stuff (?), I am to understand occurs in the Summer at the castle. Flanking the entrance to the castle is William Wallace on one side and Robert the Bruce on the other side. Symbolic and ironic, that. Touching. We walked up and saw the gun batteries, the chapel, which is the oldest building in the castle, and now houses a prisoner of war exhibit I was okay with not seeing, although I have enjoyed seeing pictures from it. I saw the Great Hall, and the Scottish Crown jewels. Monarchs remain a mystery to me and it's a very strange concept to me to make an assumption of superiority based on nothing but your birthright. Boggles my mind.
Now is where I tell my castle ghost story. This castle tried to eat me, I am sure of it. This is how I remember things. There is a picture in my pics, that says "David's Tower". I had gone in search of a rest room, and passed David's Tower on my way down to it, used the facilities, and then made my way back. The tower was an area where you could go inside the castle and see some of the underground and excavated stuff, and I think portions of at least a few of the dungeons. So I walk in to this place and it is damp and creepy, to be sure. I see this one area where there is a gate, and the gate is open, and it's like, I am being beckoned to go through the gate and investigate. I do go down. It's dark down there, and I think how easy it would be to lose one's way down there. I cannot see well and have to move back up the stairs and into the light to make an adjustment on one of the cameras I was using. It feels like a tugging, a "don't go" as I'm walking back up the stairs and into the light. I make my adjustment and turn back around to return. I walk forward a few paces, and the gate is no longer open and beckoning, it is closed. I move my hand to the inside, thinking it's just a latch because I was JUST THERE, and there's a lock on it. I look around startled, and there is no one else around. I SWEAR TO GOD that gate was JUST OPEN and I was JUST down there (pointing). At this point I get REALLY creeped out, get goose bumps and hurry up and out of David's Tower. I can't shake the feeling that David's Tower wanted me to stay for a very, very long time...
Now, I had a fascination with "closes" when I was in Scotland. There's a particular book by Diana Gabaldon that has my favorite, most romantic scene. It involves someone peering down a close to find a particular business, and find it she does. My goal was to find a close that I thought closely resembled the one in the book and take a picture of it. So, I had to take a picture of a lot of closes in the process, but they really are fascinating things...small little alley streets that connect the main streets and different levels in Edinburgh, and I saw them in Inverness also...this was also coupled with taking pictures of everything in Scotland that had "Fraser" on it. Heh, yeah, I know I'm a dork...
Finally, there are a couple of pictures of my room and the view from it. The next pics are of the restaurant where we ate dinner that night. Called Maxie's, it was an awesome place and I had one of my favorite meals here. In the UK, they have these special deals where you get like two or three courses on an "early bird" special for a lesser price. This night, you got to choose an appetizer, main course and a desert. My appetizer was a smoked salmon spread that was put on Scottish oak cakes, and there was small salad on the plate too. Then my dinner was a bed of potatoes, a salmon filet, then a chicken breast and a white cream sauce. My GOD was it good! One of my top two, for sure.
Finally, we ended up at Black Bull No. 12, a pub with a lively Scottish entertainer, fine cider, sing-alongs, and great times. The square we had to walk through on the way down is where they used to hold public executions, and looking up, there was a stunning view of the castle from below.
We ended walking back to the hotel and happened upon some chaps who were in their chips and helping the local garbage men toss the bags into the truck. With it being high tourist season, it seemed the trash was collected daily on the busy streets, and it's a wonder they keep the city as clean as they do!
This day, our day began with another hotel breakfast that was quite enjoyable. Again with the ham/bacon, but this time they did also have like oatmeal, eggs, fruit, all sorts of juices, yogurt...coffee, of course. Good stuff!
We then got on a bus to take a driving tour of Belfast. This was quite an interesting contrast, as the tour guide this time was a non-religious atheist, who really sort of skimmed over the Troubles and stuff that had happened. She showed us the murals, but sort of rolled her eyes and thought the talking about the religious fanaticism was a lot of bother that, but her actions, seemed silly to her. She seemed slightly, however, to lean towards British Loyalism. Just a feeling, there...
From there, we drove over near the Titanic memorial. We were able to get off the bus, see the dry dock, which I believe is still the largest in the world, and see where they built the Titanic. The quote of the day for this portion of the trip was the bus driver said "You know what we say here in Belfast, don'tcha lass?" "No, please share..." "Well, we say 'she was afloat when she left Belfast'", said with a brogue and a chuckle. The sheer scale of what occurred there, like a hundred years ago is incredibly impressive. I wanted to take a picture of the picture that represents the ship inside the dry dock, because I don't really think you can get a sense of it otherwise...
At any rate, it was a super fun thing to visit and say that I've seen. I bought a 100 year anniversary post card, enjoyed the view, read about the pump house, saw the new museum that's being erected and resembles a giant iceburg, which I find incredibly ironic. Apparently from the air, it's supposed to look like the WHITE STAR from the WHITE STAR LINE that built the Titanic, but it's all silver and shiny. Here's the most current pic I could find on the Interwebs. There's one in my pics, as well. I guess the big celebration for the 100 year thing happens next year in 2012.
As we were driving around, we stopped at this house that reminded me of the US White House that's set back down this looong drive. It's closed behind iron gates, and the gates say "NO PARKING: GATE TO BE KEPT CLEAR AT ALL TIME". Apparently, such signs are merely a suggestion, as our tour bus backed up right to the sign, actually, and then allowed us all to go out and look at the house =) Irony, that =)
As we were driving back to the hotel, we passed this, COMPOUND is the only work I can think to express it, of the Police Headquarters of Northern Ireland. This looked like military bases look in the US. It was...interesting to see a police force like that...
After we got back to the hotel, we had some time to kill before eating a group dinner that night, so we decided to walk down the street and see if we could find a market or something interesting to see. We found St. George's market, an indoor market that was pretty amazing! There was lots of cool stuff in there! Everything from pastries, cheeses and amazing Indian food to textiles, beautiful knitted and crafted scarves, wood work items, Irish memorabilia and history stuff, used and new books, toys, jams and jellies, you name it, it was there and it was incredible! I managed to purchase a beautiful scarf that I cannot wait to make a part of some belly dance costume! We shopped....man, this was seriously one of the few times I wish I had had unlimited funds! One of my favorite things was a tabletop trebuchet! I wanted to buy it for my honey so badly, but it would have been bulky and hard to transport back home and was also pricey for a girl in a severe budget. I got his card, though, and might still absolutely need to own something like that!
For dinner this night, we went to the Opera House, which was next to our hotel, maybe ten steps away. The food was okay, the dessert was funky looking and odd, with freeze dried meringue, or something like that, but it was an adventure! After dinner, some of us went to the Crown Pub and Bar. We had heard about this bar, and actually went in the day before, but it was SO packed that we couldn't find a place to sit, so we went to the pub across the street. They have these little cubby holes, with closed doors to give those inside a measure of privacy. These were used for noble and nefarious practices in the past, to be sure =) We were also told a story about how the builder of the original building was for Irish independence, and his wife was a loyalist. She agreed to let him build the bar if he paid homage to England's king. So, there is a Crown at the threshold where folks can wipe their feet as they enter =) I LIKE this Irish humor! The grand total? I think we fit 11 people in one of the cubbies and managed a group picture. Good times!
We had to leave SUPER early for the airport the next morning, so it was an early night, lots of relaxation, repacking, for me a tad bit of laundry, and appreciating the fact that I got to room by myself. It caused a huge amount of stress when it was happening, but there were many times during the trip that I would not have asked for a roomie. =) Thank you, Universe, for knowing what I needed even when I didn't =)
This day dawned, and it was time to say good-bye to beautiful Dublin, Ireland. You were good to me, Dublin. You showed me Bullmer's Cider, the Guiness plant, Malahide Castle, and so very many other things. I was serenaded, got to be drunk while my nephew was celebrating his birthday in another part of the world, and walk home at 3am with a gallant gentleman! I hope that I can return and visit you again some day!
We got on the bus and got to enjoy the gorgeous green countryside of Ireland in the Summer. It rained off and on, but all we saw was beautiful and worthy of appreciation. About half way there, we stopped at this very cool "applegreen" store. It was part play area for small children, had a Burger King inside, and what looked like a gourmet deli and food store too! I got some drinks, took a picture of the "you are here" sign, and got back on the bus. It was a short excursion, but good to stretch the legs...
We arrived in Belfast, and pulled up to our hotel, the Europa! We later found out that our hotel was in the Guiness Book of World Records....as the most BOMBED hotel in the world! There's a whole lot of story behind that, but suffice to say, I am relieved that I didn't know that until our last night there =) I would have been a bit more nervous...
The Europa, though, was pretty cool. I was almost immediately surprised that things seemed very formal in Belfast. Of course, we were in a fancy hotel with lots of weddings and other things happening in and around it, but lots of people were dressed up. We live in Reno. We don't dress up, really. We had to wait awhile for our rooms, and they left our luggage in the lobby. Sure, the concierge was right there, but it still made me nervous to leave my stuff there...
We walked across the street and ate lunch at a pub. It was the only time, the entire time I was there, that I ate a burger and it was pretty disappointing. I might live in the cheap food capitol of the world, but I also appreciate good food. Should have had the salad....that will teach me to eat poorly =) The cider was good, though, as was the company =)
We walked down and immediately encountered great buildings and it turned out there was a festival and parade happening at one of the city's center buildings that day! It couldn't have been more perfect! It was the Lord Mayor's Parade, and it's theme was "One World, One Future, One Vision". I can't tell you how much this appealed to me! We saw a pink, colorful dog or large animal thingie, a metallic robot, and lots of colorful costumes, dancing, vendors....looked like a great time with lots of people! The atmosphere was very festive! Since returning home, I've discovered that Belfast has its youngest mayor ever, and he's doing pretty cool things. I wish him luck, there is a lot of healing that needs to take place in this community!
We were trying to find a place to exchange money and we asked these young men who were selling the tour bus tickets. They fought about it for a bit, resulting in one of my favorite moments from Belfast, that was luckily caught on film. The ending comment between them was "feck ye". The people in Belfast were nothing if not genuine!
We made it back to the hotel and finally got to get our stuff into our rooms. My room was nice, very classy looking with glass doors in the bathroom. My immediate view wasn't great, but looking out and up, I got a gorgeous mountain view!
Riding the elevator down to go to dinner, I ended up in the elevator with a very amusig bridal side of a wedding party, where the dad was teasing the daughter about farting in the elevator and leaving it for everyone else to stew in. She was mortified, and I spent the ride down chuckling...and holding my breath =)
We had some time to explore more before dinner, so we decided to walk up and head for the museum and Botanical Gardens. Along the way we passed the Queen's University, which was a beautiful place to snap pictures and they had a gorgeous garden right out front. Along this walk, I took a pretty major spill and fell hard! You will see in my pics, a golden colored mandala that was hanging on the wall. I saw it from outside the small park where it was, and rushed inside to take a picture of it. Along the way, the stones on the walk were very slick from rain and moss and I slid across the stones and ate shit hard! I scraped my elbow and knee and took quite a bit of a tumble, but was mostly okay. I WAS sore for several days, but was glad the injuries weren't more extensive. I did NOT need to end up with crutches or stitches during my trip! There was a little blood, but I didn't tear any of my clothing, and dirt washes off =)
The gardens were lovely. We saw many gorgeous trees, including one poor tree that looked as though it were in jail! I don't know what a poor little tree has to do to have a cage built around it, but maybe someone thought they were protecting the tree, or there's a reason not immediately clear why this happened, but it was quite a site! We came across this amazing giant green house that was called the Palm House. It reminds me of stories I've read of great manors that have huge green houses on their grounds, or perhaps solarium's or private inside gardens where rich people have gardeners that create wonderlands of plants and flowers to delight all those passing through. This was certainly that! Everything from plants that actually looked like huge, hairy spiders, reaching down to spin you inside their webs, to beautiful palm trees, and gorgeous flowers and grapes, it was a green wonderland! The beds outside the Palm House were bare, and we wondered if the greenery inside moved outside later in the year, but we never found out the answer to that...
We passed a mural, a fairy glenn or entrance to a fairy kingdom, surely, then we made our way to the arbor and rose gardens, which were also amazing, beautiful, and odiferously enchanting. We passed many awesome and ancient tree friends along the way, too. I saw one tree that looked like a Treant to me, from Tolkien. Gorgeous! It was interesting to me, in the rose garden, that the yellow and white roses smelled the best. Even if there was a hint of yellow, or mostly yellow with red rims, they smelled very much stronger than the red or purple or other colors of roses. Another grand adventure, and we met up with some others of our group here and chatted for a minute.
We walked to the museum, and got there just in time to be told that it was closing at 5pm and it was like, 5 minutes til. We thought we would come back later, but we never made it back. I am okay with this. We did see an amazing piece of metal sculpture outside that you will see in my pictures. I took the pic because it reminded me of my welding teacher John Septien and what he taught us about perspective and making sure a piece is interesting from all sides. This was certainly that, and I tipped my umbrella to John for being my teacher many times on my trip, and teaching me how to appreciate such things...
We walked back down on our free day in Belfast, and had seen or read something while on our travels that said if we wanted to know the "true story" of the history and troubles that have plagued Belfast, to find a black cab and ask the driver if he'd take us on a tour of the murals. We decided this sounded like a pretty nifty idea, and everyone else was shy, so I approached a cab driver. The first one we approached said he was a little young, but to go to cabs up and talk to that guy, he could help us...
We approached, and he was a rough looking guy, kinda, an obvious facial scar, gray hair, and it's interesting to understand the accents in this part of Ireland. We discussed what we wanted, and he said he could do that and we negotiated a price that seemed very reasonable to us and entered the cab. The cabs themselves are somewhat a wonder because I expected to be very cramped in the small space, but they are actually quite roomy for how small they are, and have forward and back facing seating as well as allowing a passenger to sit beside the driver. Then there's the whole driving on the wrong side of the road thing and having the drivers side of the vehicle on the opposite side...but we won't go there...
Our guides name was Stevie, and he started out by showing us a large, black plastic bullet that was an example of those shot by British troops at civilians during the times of unrest in Northern Ireland, also called "The Troubles". This issue is huge and there are many sides to it. We saw the Catholic side, and I admit that the view we were presented by the guide was colored by his experiences, but it was fascinating, nonetheless. To read generally about the Troubles, check out the Wikipedia explanation for an overview, or the BBC for more detail.
One of the first photos that Stevie showed us was of himself as a young man, lobbing an anti-tank explosive device into a British tank. At first we were somewhat timid, and I regret I don't have a picture of that particular picture, but one of my travel mates does, and I hope to be able to add it at some point. As a result of that, he spent ten years in prison as a terrorist. He took us to the main mural that is at least a block long, there are many pictures of it in my stuff. We got out and he talked to us about what it was like to live during that time. In the pictures of the mural, notice the barbed wire that is still across the top of the wall. It was very disconcerting to see that everywhere, or to see the signs near people's homes that said "NOTICE: CCTV in use"...there, 'Big Brother' is truly watching. He says people weren't really scared because it was just the way it was. There was really no choice but to keep living and carrying on with day to day life. They were under curfew 22 hours a day. Anything they needed to obtain outside their homes had to be accomplished in two hours a day or you risked getting shot. In response to how he got involved with the IRA, he said everyone was involved, it's just what you did if you were young and male.
He then showed us a piece of barbed wire. He said he dug that piece of wire out from the cell where he lived for those ten years and he looks at it every day to remember where he's been, how far he's come and where he is now. It's a reminder. He said it's important for people like us to visit Belfast and see how things were when stuff happened. He showed us many pictures where there were tanks and burned out buses, but we saw the current, nice and clean, civilized street. It was very, very striking, and very sobering. We saw memorials dedicated to those who've been killed in these conflicts, some going back to the early 1900's, up to very recent. There was one very poignant display where there were pictures along the entire wall and large red lettered words MURDERED and what date and general circumstances the individuals were killed under. Women, children, men, this violence was non-discriminatory. This was a very emotionally heavy tour, but it's sort of like visiting Auschwitz. It's our obligation as humans to know about stuff like this so it can't happen again.
At one point, because we had been in the cab for awhile, one of our members had to use the restroom. Stevie was nice enough to call his mum and ask if we could use her facilities, as we were near her home when we told him we needed to stop. He was a lovely man, his mum was very sweet, and we thoroughly enjoyed the experience of getting to meet him and experience a few hours of him, having him share his memories with us.
We saw different sections of the "Freedom Wall", erected to "protect" the Protestant loyalists from the scourge of the Catholics. One of the memorials we saw was very near the edge of the wall. Stevie showed us that although everyone talks peacefully and like everything is better now, people are still afraid. They build cages around their porches facing the all, so no one gets hurt of killed if someone hefts a bomb over the wall. I CANNOT imagine living like that! I've never been more happy, or felt more ashamed to live in the safety and ease of the US. Stevie says he'd love to see that wall come down, but he doesn't think it will happen during his lifetime. He says as long as people like him, who remember everything that happened and lived through it, are alive, he doesn't think it will happen. I hope that isn't true. One of the final thoughts Stevie left us with was surprising and very thought-provoking...
He shared that the world cried with America after 9-11. Everyone mourned with us and for us, and the horrible loss of life that occurred on that day. We are now very near the 10th Anniversary of what occurred. He said no one would have wished that horrible act or loss of life on anyone, in any country. However, in a strange way, that event occurring helped the people of Northern Ireland. It helped them because it brought a global focus and spotlight onto terrorism, what terrorism is and was, and it began a global lack of tolerance for such things to continue to take place. Things got better for those in Northern Ireland after 9-11. I don't think one could ever put a "positive" spin on that horrible event, but it is good to know that perhaps, elsewhere in the world, the backlash from the event did some positive things.
As we finished up with Stevie, we asked him to take us to a good place for dinner. He dropped us at the Morning Star, where we had an excellent meal and tried to process everything from our tour. This seemed like one of the longest days we spent during the entire trip. I'd say we packed enough into this day that it seemed like at least three days! We walked back to the hotel, saw interesting stuff along the way that was mostly closed by the time we walked back, and it was time to fall exhausted into bed that night!
