Mum's birthday

Today was a quiet day. Patricia and I walked into town to buy a card for Mum’s birthday and wrapping paper for her present. While in town we stopped for coffee/tea and cake at the “Coffee and Cream Tea Rooms and Restaurant” on Union Street. It was a lovely cozy place with half a dozen tables each table remained occupied as patron finished lunch and left the restaurant and new customers took their place. The Rocky Road slice of cake that I had was excellent but the fruit cake that Patricia had was not anywhere near as good as the fruit cake Mandy had made for the wedding cake.

The afternoon we spent ready and writing and talking to Mum until it was time to drive to Shifnal to meet Derek and Dawn for an early birthday dinner for Mum, who will celebrate her 91st birthday tomorrow when we are on the road to London.

We met Derek and Dawn at the Seven Inn and we were immediately told that the plan had changed and we were to eat an Italian restaurant about 50 yards down the road so Derek and I went to move the car out of the Seven Inn parking lot to a parking space on the road outside the Italian restaurant. I went into the restaurant, secured the table and ordered a glass of wine and Antipasto while Derek returned to the Seven Inn to finish his drink and collect Dawn, Mum and Patricia.

Dinner was excellent though the method of ordering food was a little quirky. Waitresses took orders for drinks and brought bread to the table, but we had to order food by going to the bar and telling the proprietor what we wanted to eat. One or other of the waitresses then brought the food to our table. Patricia and I ordered chicken cooked with Gorgonzola and wine and chicken cooked with Brie and wine. Then we shared portions with each other. Both dishes came with the same selection of fried potatoes, green salad and pasta. Both dishes were superbly cooked and very tasty.

After dinner we said good bye to Derek and Dawn and thanked them for all their hospitality then took Mum home for a final glass of Bailey’s Irish cream.

Patricia and Graham at Dorcey's













Patricia at the Coffee and Cream Restaurant in Wellington


















Mum and Patricia andGraham before Mum's birthday dinner













Mum and patricia at Dorcey's













Graham and police at Wellington Town Square













Derek and Graham laughing hard













Derek and Dawn at Dorcey's













Derek, Dawn and Mum ad Graham outside Darcey's












All at Mum's birthday dinner at Darcey's

The drive south - Strathaven to Wellington

Wednesday August 12, 2009

The Scottish potion of our trip is over and it is time to head south and take Mum home. Goodbyes are always so difficult. We all had such a wonderful time in Scotland since crossing the border last Wednesday, many memories have been created and many pictures taken to remind us of those memories.

Once again it was raining and the wind was blowing - all the windmills we passed around Strathaven and alongside the M74 were working and producing green electricity - the day was dreary and the skies were grey. The weather brightened as we neared the Scottish border so we decided to turn off at Gretna Green and buy a Scottish map to add to the maps on the walls of Patricia’s garage. The old Blacksmith’s shop where English runaways used to get married has been turned into a tourist attraction. There is now a café and a restaurant and half a dozen shops selling all manner of Scottish items ranging from kilts to Arran sweaters to Scotch whisky and a large number of tourist must-haves like fridge magnets, playing cards, decals and pins with Gretna Green or Scotland proudly displayed. A convenience store sold the map we were looking for and a small supermarket designed primarily to help feed the tourists in RVs and campers sold us milk and cheese and sausage for tomorrow’s breakfast.

The sun was now out and we decided to take a small detour to explore part of Hadrian’s wall, the fortifications built by the Romans in AD120 to keep the Scots out of the territory south of the wall controlled by the Romans. The wall took five years to construct. It was 79 miles long and 12 feet high, running from the North Sea coast just north of Newcastle to the Irish Sea coast just west of Carlisle. Much of the wall was plundered for building materials in the 1000 years following the collapse of the Roman empire in AD400, but some sections remain as wall in fields and some of the forts have been rediscovered and have been surveyed by archeologists.

We followed the directions Andy gave us and came to a part of the wall called Birdoswald Roman Fort, one of ten forts built by the Romans along the wall. An interesting visitors center gave us much history of the wall and the fort and provided a map so we could walk through the remains of the fort and the many changes that were made by subsequent occupiers of the buildings. An interesting place, well worth diverting off the main road to see.

Back on the road again heading south we again encountered rain and drizzle outside Manchester and the Potteries. We pulled off the motorway at Stafford to drive the 20 miles or so cross country to Wellington. In the village of Gnosall we stopped at a pub called the Navigation Inn for dinner. The Inn’s name presumably comes from its location on the Shropshire Union Canal. Tourists in the Long boats plying the canal often stop at the Navigation for lunch or supper or just for a drink to break the journey. We ate Country Fare Pie, a “special” pie we were told was made by the chef this morning from many different meats and drank a Bank’s cask ale called Reverend James. The pie – served with fries and vegetables - was excellent after we asked for gravy as a complement.

Thirty minutes after finishing dinner we arrived at Mum’s, weary from the journey and glad to be home. When we were comfortably settled in Mum’s living room she gave me her birthday present – an original painting she had commissioned of the Wrekin. A lovely reminder of the place I spent most of my childhood, it will look great in the library at home.

Mum giving Graham the painting of the Wrekin













Welcome to England sign













Long boats by the Navigation Inn and canal in Gnosall











Patricia watching the Sheep at Hadrian's wall














Patricia and Graham by Hadrian's wall













Graham and Patricia at Gretna Green














Navigation Inn menu












Shropshire Union Canal at the side of the Navigation Inn













Mum at the fort at Hadrian's wall













Mum and Patricia at Hadrian's wall














Mum and Graham at the fort in Hadrian's wall













Hadrian's wall visitors center













Mum and Patricia at Hadrian's wall













sign at Gretna Green













shops at Gretna Green













Piper at Gretna Green

The birthday day for real

Happy Birthday to me!!!

After breakfast, Mum, Patricia and I drove to a multiplex cinema east of Glasgow on the M8 to meet Nicola and Stephen. They parked their car in the cinema parking lot and the five of us drove north towards the Wallace Monument. However not long after leaving the parking lot we saw a signpost for the Falkirk Wheel. Andy had recommended a visit to the Falkirk Wheel as an engineering marvel. So we took his advice.

The Falkirk Wheel is a device for lifting long boats that links the Union Canal from Edinburgh with the Forth & Clyde Canal, which goes from Grangemouth to Glasgow. The wheel consists of two bath shaped tubs at 6 o’clock and 12 o’clock on the wheel. One tub locks on to the Union Canal and the other tub locks on to the Clyde Canal. The ends of the tubs are open and a long boat motors into the water filled tub. The ends of the tub close sealing the long boat and the water inside and the two tubs then rotate 180 degrees changing places. The ends of the tub open once again and the long boats motor out of the tub and continue the journey on the canal. Seeing the boats changing places in this way was indeed impressive.

After marveling at the wall chart that told us each rotation of the wheel took less power than needed to heat six electric kettles we continued on our way to the William Wallace Monument.

For those that have not seen “Brave Heart”, William Wallace was a Scottish hero who attempted to resist King Edward I of England. Edward I was attempting to conquer Scotland and make it part of his domain. Wallace was betrayed and executed in 1305 but it took several hundred years, until 1780, for the monument to be erected on his honor. To reach the monument one must first climb several hundred feet on a path up on a wooded hill side. The monument is a crenellated tower with 246 steps from the ground to the open air viewing platform at the top. Between the ground floor and the viewing platform are three rooms at different levels. The 1st room gives an explanation of Wallace’s significance and achievements including an interesting re-enactment of his trial in London. The 2nd room contains busts of important Scottish writers, scientist and inventors and the 3rd room contains a diorama outlining the construction of the monument.

By now it was 4 pm, too late to visit Stirling Castle so we decided to take the long way home and visit the bridges over the Firth of Forth.
There are two bridges crossing the Firth of Forth, a railway bridge built almost a century ago from steel girders arranged in three diamond shaped structures and a road suspension bridge built over 30 years ago. The road bridge shortened the travelling distance from Edinburgh to Aberdeen by more than an hour, saving either a 30 mile journey downriver to the Kincardine bridge or a wait for the ferry boat crossing.

South Queensferry is a small town on the banks of the Firth of Forth in front of the cliffs and steep embankments that rise more than 500 feet above the river. The town used to be a an important stopping-off point for people waiting for the car ferry across the Forth, but now that the car ferry is no longer in existence the town has remade itself as a quaint tourist town with regular festivals to keep people visiting and taking pictures of the bridges above. There are several interesting buildings including the Hawes Inn where Robert Louis Stevenson lived while writing Kidnapped. We also found a take-away café with the best ice-cream we have tasted on this trip.

From South Queensferry we drove back to Andy and Andrea’s for a delightful dinner of Chicken and Prawn Risotto washed down with Jacob’s Creek Australian Shiraz.
With that, my 60th Birthday celebration concluded. Thanks to all of those that celebrated with me and demonstrated how much they care for me.

The wheel in action













The Wallace Monument













Stephen and Mum chatting at the Wallace monument coffee shop












Stephen and Nicola and Mum and Graham at the Wallace Monument












Graham and Patricia by the horses at the Falkirk Wheel












Graham and Patricia at the top of the Wallace Monument












Patricia and Graham and the two bridges from South Queensferry












Patricia and Graham and Nicola and Mum at the Falkirk Wheel












Patricia with Wallace


















Patricia and the Wallace sword


















Mum and Nicola and Stephen and Graham at the coffee shop at the Wallace monument












Nicola and Stephen and Mum at South Queensferry












Graham signing the visitors book at the Wallace monument


















Graham by the Falkirk wheel after it completes it's turn


















Graham at the top of the Wallace monument














Graham at the bottom of 246 steps on the Wallace monument

















Graham at South Queensferry














Graham and Nicola and Mum and Stephen and the rail bridge from South Queensferry












All around the table at Andy and Andreas for Graham's birthday dinner












Andy and Andrea chatting with us at dinner

Fraserborough and back with Andy

Andy had a job to do today at fish processing plant in Fraserborough a fishing village about 200 miles north of Strathaven so we decided to ride with him and enjoy the beautiful Scottish country side. It would also give us chance to explore Fraserborough while Andy completed his work.

We left Strathaven at 6 am in rather dreary weather. It was raining and the clouds were low in the sky. Our route took us passed Stirling, through Perth and then along the coastal route trough Aberdeen to Fraserborough.

We arrived in Fraserborough at 10 am and Andy dropped us in the town square close to the Tourist Information Center where we obtained a map and information about places to visit in the town from a very nice Scottish lady. Armed with this information we walked about half mile to the Tea Shop in the Lighthouse Museum where we ate breakfast. After breakfast we walked around the point, passed the poles that used to be used for drying the fishing nets, around the old and new lighthouses and giant foghorn, and passed the wine tower to the harbor wall.

By this time clouds had lifted and the sun had come out so we walked along the harbor wall looking for seals on the seaward side of the wall and looking at the very modern fishing boats on the harbor side of the wall. Then we walked back to the town square for a not very good ice cream and a visit to the cleanest public restroom I have seen in a long time. It was worth the 20 p entrance fee.

Andy picked us up at 2 pm and we left town to drive through the mountains on the way back to Strathaven. About 10 miles out of town we stopped in a lay by and ate a delicious lunch of leftovers from Saturday night’s party and Sunday night dinner. The drive through the mountains was spectacular. Our route took us through Huntly to Braemar where we stopped for coffee and walked to stretch our legs.

For many miles there were few houses or villages. Campers were pitching their tents alongside the rivers. The hills side was generally bare of trees except in the few places where the Forestry Service had planted a large stand of pine trees. We came across sky lifts, obviously closed for the summer running up the hill side. There were many sheep grazing and some cattle.

Just south of Perth we stopped for a fish supper at the Fish & Chip Shop in Auchteradrer, the village next to Gleneagles Golf Course. The fish and fries were excellent.

We arrived home at 9 pm.

Graham at the best fish and chip shop in Auchterarder












Graham and Andy having coffee in Braemar













Picnic with Andy on the road back to Strathaven














Graham by the Wine Tower in Fraseborough













Graham buying a bad ice cream in Fraserborough













Graham at the lighthouse museum in Fraserborough












Graham by the lighthouse in Fraserborough













Patricia and Graham by the harbour wall in Fraserborough












Graham and patricia at Braemar












Patricia and Graham by the fishing net drying area in Fraseborough