Scotland - Part Two

Tuesday, April 4, 2006 6:40 pm

We are now in the MacKinnon Country House Hotel--a Hotel rather than a B & B, which is what Dhailing Lodge was. Less personal and less attractive. The plus is the actual bathtub in each room. There was a hideous burgundy spread on my bed which I took off and p ut in the closet, in favor of the flowered duvet covered feather comforter beneath it. They are trying, according to their Hotel book, to decorate each room in the colors of the clan the room is named for--in the case of my room, Clan Leslie, and the colors are burgundy and green with a navy tripe running through.

We had a long day of travel to get here. One of our stops was at the Glencoe visitor's center. Glencoe is a range of mountains in the Highlands with a bloody history during the Jacobite period. The Campbells were ordered by the British to murder the MacDonalds, who held Glencoe. The British wanted to control the mountainous area, I'm sure, but also thought of these Highlanders as barbarians and not worth living. How they convinced the Campbells to be so traitorous I don't know. Promises of land, probably. The area is dramatically beautiful, the mountains rising just beside the road that goes through it, and at this time of year there is still snow on them. The mountains aren't high, maybe 5000 ft., but impressive so close. Since our family can be traced back to the Campbells we must be careful who we tell around here, as all on the Isle of Skye would have a negative view of that betraying clan.

Another stop was at a place called The Green Welly, called thusly because a Green Welly (mucking around boot) is very posh, versus a black welly! We stopped for a cafeteria type lunch. I had a cheese/tomato sandwich and a scone. Good scone with gold and black raisins. Scones here are smaller here than the US behemoths we are used to from Starbucks, et.al.

Prices are high and our exchange rate is practically 50%. I got 106.25 pounds for $200!! Yikes! Not buying much! I did buy a plain scarf and a stuffed sheep for Ali, and cookies for people at work. I've picked up a few rocks to take back for Bookworm and another friend.

Moving around is hard for Mom, so sometimes when we make short stops she stays in the car. She seems happy enough to do that, but it makes me sad to think of h ow she would have bounded out of the car if she hadn't broken her ankle. I wonder if she will ever really heal to 100%. I pray she does and she is determined to. Of course, now I wish I had organized this trip 2 or 3 years ago, but the timing was right now, so there you have it.

This hotel we are in is not anything like the Dhailing Lodge. The other ws beautifully appointed and decorated. Fraser was a wonderful host, moving our utensils at dinner so we'd know which ones to use, very courtly with Mom. The rooms were immaculate and tasteful. The meals were incredible. This hotel, in comparison, is obviously trying hard but not quite making it. The tile in the bathroom isn't trimmed under the sink, the toilet shifts when you sit on it, the chairs are some awful 50s style with tartan fabric. There is a hair drier, though, as there was at the Dhailing, which is a surprise to me. (I didn't bring mine because even with a UK adapter I blew out all the circuits in my Mate's Aunt's house in Norwich!)

The choice of food is odd here.The menu is Steak, Dover Sole, Salmon Venison or Chicken stuffed with Haggis! I chose the Sole tonight, but it was served whole with a heavy sauce on it. I had to eat down to the bones and then flip it over. I ignored the head. Desserts were various "puddings" (very moist sweet breads) or ice cream. I had a walnut/apple pudding with vanilla hard sauce and Mom and Erin had the Plum Duff w/sauce. I love the name Plum Duff, but it was just a very rich "pudding". The oddest part of this dinner, aside from the fact that the 3 of us were the only people in the large dining room, was bagpipe music being played on boombox. Oh yes, the white (think Wonderbread) bread with trimmed crusts in toast rack, on the table during dinner, was also a disconcerting touch. Crikey!!! I believe we are in a foreign country!

Must stop--very sleepy I get the single room this time, with Mom and Erin sharing a room. I am glad for the quiet.

Wednesday, April 5, 2006 3:55 pm

Very stormy day on Skye! We were intending to visit more places but the weather is so cold, wet and windy that we are skipping some things. We went to a botanical garden at Armadale Castle this morning and were able to get Mom an electric wheel chair. She had a ball with it, going off on her own at one point, just because she could. The garden contained the ruins of a mansion, Armadale, a mansion built to look like a castle.

On our way here yesterday, we stopped at Eileen Donan Castle, which is quite a superb ruin and a real castle, six or seven centuries old. It is wonderful to photograph. At low tide there are gigantic rocks, a stone bridge. It looks like something out of myth. Erin and I took tons of pictures there until George made us get back on the way to get to MacKinnon house by dinner. That has been the agenda every day-- leave at 9 a.m. and back by dinner, which is usually 7 pm.

I got wet and cold today, so when we got back at 5:30 I took a bath then took a nap in the fluffy terry robe provided in the closet. Very nice!

Dinner for me was prawns in the shell (!) as a "starter", then Breast of Chicken stuffed with Haggis and a very dense chocolate cake. The chicken with haggis turned out to be very good! The haggis was more like a grain stuffing. I guess it's just the thought of it being steamed in a sheep's stomach that made me think it would be something that tasted like organ meat. It doesn't. Haggis is used so much here that we have seen large vans pulling up in front of restaurants and hotels with nothing but the daily ration of Haggis! Best Haggis, LTD.

Tomorrow will be another travel day to a new hotel. I hope the weather is better. I think George feels badly about today. I forgot to mention this fabulous shop we visited this morning. It was called Ragamuffin. Incredible knit things--fashion scarves, hat, pins made of boiled wool, beautiful too expensive clothing. Mom bought a pink, blue, maroon scarf knit in a contemporary pattern. Erin bought a silk scarf and a ring. I bought a felt pin. We could have spent hundreds of pounds there if we'd had them.

Profile Picture???

This is me wondering how the heck I can get this photo loaded into my profile. I know Fossil Guy knows how to do this and maybe he can help. I know he tried to help me, in vain, to get blog links up, so the possibility of his being able to explain in words how to get this very nice picture of me on my page is slim. I always need showing, not telling. That is the way of my learning. Help! I already tried to do as told--take the code from this pic and paste it into profile URL space, but I keep getting "too many characters" message or when I take characters out I get the "can't find page, link is broken" message. No duh!! It's one of the best pictures taken of me in a long while, so I really want to put it on there!

Taylor won!!!!! My boy!!!! I don't care what Bookworm thinks about Clinton, here is your New Elvis!!! I love the guy!

Scotland I - Traveling with a Gimp

April 1, 2006 - 5:55 Eastern

We have made it to Newark and are waiting in the airport for E. to arrive from Norfolk.

Mom is getting all kinds of special tratment because of her broken ankle and her self-described "crippledness". We have had wheelchairs at every turn. The Philippina woman who pushed her in Seattle was great. The ones we've had here in Newark are not quite as generous and apparently get tips. I haven't tipped anyone! Oops!

At Seatac we stopped for a coffee at a Starbucks stand, got 2 coffees and a scone and the girl told me I owed her $10.99!! I said, "What?? For 2 coffees and a scone?? How much does that scone cost?!!" She yelled, "April Fool!" I didn't get it at first but we all ended up having a good laugh.

Mom seems confused about E. coming and just where she's coming from. Pretty soon she'll be here and all will be clear! It's always a tough trip to get from Seattle to Europe. An awful long time in airports and planes. Mom has done well and her spirits are high. I didn't sleep well at the hotel last night so I've been a little tired but I'll revive eventually.

April 2, 2006 - 10:54 pm Scotland

We are just getting into bed after a lovely slow meal here at the Dhailing Lodge Hotel in Dunoon. E. made it to the plane but just by a whisker. Her Norfolk plane left 1 1/2 hours late and our plane out to Edinburgh was late leaving so it came together. Once again Mom (and E. and I by extension) was boarded ahead of others and once we got settle we had a rousing chat. It's the first time E. has seen her Gradma in about 12 years.

We all tried to sleep, after dinner and a movie, The Family Stone, but only I succeeded. We got into Edinburgh in 6 hours, once again met by a wheelchair. We were escorted to passport check and then to baggage. As we came out of baggage we met George Wallace, our Best Scottish Tours guide. Right up until that moment I hadn't been absolutely confident that BST was for real. I kept picturing a scam group that had run off with my money!

But far from it. George has been wonderful, even keeping a good temper when E. thought she had lost her purse at the mini-market we stopped at between Edinburgh and Glasgow. It turned out her little red wallet had gotten under the seat of the car and she discovered it when she was getting back into the car after a search of the mini-market. We were all so relieved.

The mini-market was more interesting than it normally would have been because there were many policemen there. George explained that yesterday was the championship match in Glasgow between 2 Edinburgh football (soccer to us) teams. The mini-market is the only stop between the two cities on the highway, so fans would stop there for snacks. There were 4 buses of fans plus two limos . The police, in their neon green vests, looking just like the ones from British TV, were very busy with them.

After we got all the wallet business straightened out George headed us toward Glasgow again. I was surprised at how dirty the sides of the freeway were-plastic bags blown into the leafless trees, lots of trash thrown out by motorists. I think the wind blows allot here, since it's an island, and takes the bags flying. Probably in Spring when the trees leaf out they won't be as apparent. It reminds me of my first impression of Athens--dirty. I suppose that's the way it is with cities and that's where the airports are, in the cities.

As we got off the freeway and into the country more the landscape was pretty. We are here at the very verge of Spring. The daffodils are blooming but the deciduous trees are still very bare. There may be buds if I could look up close.

The weather is very similar to Spring at home. Sun, rain bursts, sun again, sprinkles, heavy rain, sun, low clouds, blue sky patches. George took us along Loch Lomand, Loch Frye, Loch Long our our way to the tiny town of Dunoon where our hotel for two nights is. The hotel is The Dhailing Lodge Hotel, run by two men, Fraser and Donald, a long time couple I think. They have made a beautiful place. They serve both breakfast and dinner. It is wonderful not to have to worry about money, as all of this is paid for. I do think that a tip at the end of our stay will be in order.

Dinner, after much longed for napping, was 5 courses. It reminded me of a cruise ship. First there were little canapes in the parlor--E. and Mom had wine--and then we were seated in the diningroom. First course an avocado and fruit salad, then an asparagus soup, then for Mom and me, an extremely tasty gruyere/winter squash/corn bake, then dessert, apple cake with a scoop of ice cream. Was that enough? Not quite! To top it all off, cheese and biscuits (crackers). By that time I could handle only one slice of white cheddar on one cracker!

There was also coffee and a little plate of chocolates that were made by Donald's mother. Fabulous. We were in the dining room from 7:30 until 10:30--slow food and good conversation.

Must write that yesterday Mom was very tired and confused and didn't realize that the woman in the front seat of the car was E. When we sat down at lunch she looked over at E. and said to her, "You look remarkably like my Granddaughter!" It must have given E. a start, but she didn't let on and I quickly corrected her. I think this was because of tiredness--I hope so. Last night Mom insisted she needed another blood pressure pill because she was afraid she hadn't been keeping up with her pills because of the time changes. Consequently she got up every 2 hours to pee! We won't be doing that tonight! Tonight we'll be using the sleeping aids, mostly so I can sleep! Must get ready for breakfast now and to begin our second day in Scotland.

On a ceremonial necklace in Inverary Castle: "May you always have herring in the net".

Other People's Blogs

I've been reading other people's blog from 12 to now (12:40) here at work while I should be working, and boy-howdy! There's some neat things to read and look at out there! I know most of you visit Fossil Guy's site, but do you regularly check in on Life's A Tuxedo or Noapologies? Well, you should; for wonderful writing and profound observations, they are the Queens! For Passion of course, there is Clear Creek Girl (Bookworm). Love, hate, desire, sex, you name it. She's got it. There's my son, over at Plastic Porkbone, with an entirely different slant on things political and social and pop culture (he's 29) and my daughter, at Post Cards from Norfolk, who posts even less than I do, but what's there is goooood. Today I found a new one--The Big Question--I'm going to go there often now, because that's a new, cool idea! Put a question up and see what and who turns up! I like the newest Bookworm idea too--reviews of local stuff. Those of us who live around here can benefit from her unusual perspectives and since she goes to different events and places than I do, I'll do some reviews, too. And maybe one of these days I'll have a clever idea of my own! I sure hope so!

And just because I love it I'm adding a recent photo of my little granddaughter who is obviously learning to feed herself!

Blog the World!

Restaurant Rhapsodizing

Sorry, Bookworm, I stole your idea, but just this once. I went with two young friends to Irises today. Irises is a tiny well-kept café secret on Kitsap Way across from the QFC and right next to Brother Don’s Restaurant. It is my favorite place, within driving distance of work, for lunch. Today I had a veggie burger made with a Hazlenut patty (!). More often I have the pork sandwich with apple chutney on rye bread or the curried chicken salad. If I’m feeling wild I have this wonderful bar goodie that is made with nuts and oatmeal, a caramel middle and deep chocolate on the top! Yum!!!

Irises is one of those funky, tables-and-chairs-that-don’t-match places that you find in little and big towns if you’re lucky. It fills up quickly because it’s small and the food is glorious, tending towards interesting sandwiches made with hearty breads and excellent salads displayed in a cold case in big old earthenware bowls like our Grandma’s used to use. They also have a quiche to die for. This is a place, though, where when the salad runs out, that’s it! No more salad. If the brownies run out, that’s it. No more brownies. People know to get there at Noon! They also serve espresso drinks so they have a pretty good morning clientele, which includes an older man who walks for several blocks carrying his big gas station plastic mug to Irises everyday for his morning coffee. He doesn't look like an "Irises" type, but I guess there isn't such a thing.

I am risking not being able to get a table next time I go there by telling you how to find this great place. They were talking about selling the business a couple of months ago but they’ve changed their hours to be open on the weekend for lunch. Try them on a Saturday or a Sunday and have some of that good, good coffee with one of their gi-hugic and deeee-licious scones and maybe they won't sell the business!

Take note of the local art on the walls and the nice people who linger at the tables long after they finish eating. Say “HI” to Sue for me. She’s the tall woman in the apron who moseys out of the kitchen to see how things are going and remembers you if you’ve been there before. It’s kind of like Cheers—people know your name.