Not long now

Decided to stay another night here in Inverness.  Had to change rooms and the single room had been booked, but they didn't charge me extra, which is nice.

Had beautiful fresh fruit salad for breakfast.  Was very nice.  Went out to Rosskeen and got lost.  Found the new church, but had to ring the minister to find the old one.  Which is only down the road about a mile.  Huge cemetery, and didn't take my coat.  Change of weather today and only 13deg.  Was a bit misty, and the wind was cold.

 There is this building which may be the original church, but no-one to ask, and then there was this..........

but as we are looking at 1840's not sure if this is the one the Munro's were affiliated with.  Can't find anything on google to tell me the history.  Only had a cursory look though.

The cemetery is still in use, and lots of Munro's. but all seem to recent for what I was researching.

Stopped on the way back for some lunch at the Storehouse.  Very busy, but nice cream of leek soup.

Bit of a story to this granite, but will have to try and read the picture of the story, but not very clear.

like this sculpture in the garden,  nice horse.

  .

 This eagle was nice too, just for you Ro.











When I got back I  had a little kip.I AM NOT OLD.  Just all those sleepless nights catching up.  :)                                     

Went for a walk around Inverness.  Not a very big city, but a mixture of old and new.  Can't stop spending.  Not sure how I will get everything home.  Only small things, but they add up.  Hehe









Went back to the same pub for tea.  Creature of habit that I am, but if you find a good thing, stick to it.

Lamb shanks this time.  Yummy.

This is for Dave, sorry mate, could pick it up, at probably wouldn't have been able to wrap it and  post it.














Now in my jammies and watching, would you believe, Gwynne,  56 Up.  So far, Bruce, Lyn, John, Andrew, and now Tony.    Catch you all later.  Enjoy.

Leaving Skye

Breakfast at 9am.  Packed and loaded the car.  Tia thinks I am great travelling on my own.  Found out she had just lost her husband in January.  There is a 60th birthday card on the mantelpiece, so think that is how old she is.  Anyway, may our farewells and her daughter Pauline took me to Shullishadder, which is off the road to their place close to Portree.  Just an abandoned house and some ruined building, it is very possibly the place where Angus and Flora lived before emigrating.  The views are superb as it is on a hill and down a very old road.  Apparently the stepbrother never goes there.  Would make a wonderful development if you had the money, because of the view.

The white building in the left hand corner is the hospital.  Pretty cool view.  Must have been a hard decision to leave.

 This is one lot of ruins....

Don't think the corrugated iron would have been there is 1851   

This immediately behind the property.  There are other buildings, but they are from a later period.









So from here took a tour of the northern part of the island.  Also very picturesque.  How is this for clear water.......

it is called Kilt Rock.

Haven't read this properly, but something, obviously, to do with dinosaurs.  Will enlarge later.

This trip took quite awhile, and I continued on the Broadford, where I stopped for refreshments, before heading off the Inverness,

The trip was supposed to be about 2 1/2 hours, but with all the picture breaks.  I didn't arrive here in Inverness until 5pm.

This is looking back at the bridge to Skye.

Not sure I have done this justice, but couldn't resist. The water was so still.   Make a challenging jigsaw.

 After you turn off to Inverness the scenery changes, all of a sudden there a forests.  Quite bizarre.

This I found out when I got down the track, is Loch Ness.   See no monster










Found a B&B by accident, seems nice.  Small but I am the only guest at the moment, so although on a busy road, it is quiet,

As you can see the garden looks immaculate, so guessed the inside would be OK

 Very tiny, but bed is clean and comfy.

 Shower is small

the toilet works and the towel rack is heated














So may stay two nights.  Will decide in the morning.  Night everyone.  Fingers crossed, will sleep  well.

Last Night in Skye

The weather has been spectacular.  Seem to be using that word a lot. It was 29 yesterday and would have been close to that today too.  Thought I had the air-con on and thought it had broken, sweating away, cursing away, looked down and hadn't pressed the button.  Nothing wrong with me.

This is Morvean House where I am staying.  Lovely and clean.

Had scrambled eggs for breakfast and Tia offered to do my washing, and she wont let me pay her for it.  Took off for Portree, the post office to send a thank you gift, and picked up some post cards which I will do shortly.  Then to the information centre where they weren't really able to help me decipher a name.

So tried to find the cemetery in Portree, but drove right past it.  So continued on the Broadford.  It is on the water and quite picturesque.  Went into the cafe for a drink and the cook came out as was very helpful.  Had lunch there too.  Then into the post office next door.  Have to stop buying things. :)  She sent me on to the Kilbride Cemetery and found lots of MacKinnons, but it is, I have since discovered the fourth most popular name on Skye.

 This is the view from the from the B&B

Forgot to mention, did check a cemetery in Portree, but the only thing I found was this rabbit.








Came back from there and called into the Broadford information Centre and she deciphered the name as Shullihadder,  looked to me like Shallow Ladder, hehe.  She also sent me down to the Clan Donald Centre, which is the archive centre for the Island.  Don't know why the Portree people didn't send me there as I arrived not far from shutting time.

She could find a file for Angus and Flora but they had disappeared in 1851, surprise, surpise, so I was able to fill her in on where they had gone.  And on what ship, but they didn't have any records of the Marco Polo.

Left my details and they will get back to me.

 This is the Kilbride Cemetery, and what I am assuming are the ruins of the church.

Sheep are all along the roads, but don't seem to go on the roads, thought this mother and child were cute.








About this time, my battery went flat, I really must check it more often.

Came back into Broadford, and got petrol, cheaper than Portree, and decided to stay there for tea.  So had afternoon tea at The Watermill, and had asked at the petrol station where to eat and the lady customer recommended the Hebridean Hotel.  So sat and waited around for a little while and went in and had Lamb Shanks and veg for tea.  Would have preferred mash, but baby potatoes were ok.

Back to the B&B, where the washing was done, and folded and apologies for not ironing.  Was talking as I paid her and mentioned Shullishadder.  Guess what, the gods are favouring me, her uncle used to live there and either she or her daughter will take me there tomorrow morning.  It is not far out of Portree.  So rapt.

So folks, and early night.  A few postcards to write, which will not get here before I get home, but never mind.  Seem to have plenty of time left, so will leave here sometime in the afternoon, and maybe make my way to Loch Ness.

Look there is the monster.....................................  Oh, no just my reflection.

Enjoy everyone, and all keep healthy and safe.  Lots of love.

The Isle of Skye

I left to pick up the car from the Airport just before 11am.  Got lost leaving the airport, surprise, surprise.  Finally programmed the satnav, but it thought I was still in Cornwall and told me I had 800 miles to go.  Then I finally got it to recognize where I was, and off I set.  Got half to three quarters of an hour down the track, to the turn off to Loch Lomond....

pictured here is only part of it, it is much larger than I imagined.  The landscape in the Highlands, is stunning.  I was totally enthralled, so much so I nearly ran off the road a few times.








I backtracked quite a way before I realized that the stupid thing was taking me back to Glascow, who knows why.  Finally was able to turn around and looked at my map, which I had bought, and went all the way back to the same turnoff,  this time I told the satnav to go to hell.

 Still Loch Lomond on the right you can just see, should be taking photos and driving  :)

 This was when I got past the Loch, isn't it beautiful

 The day was perfect in fact had to have the air-con on.  Stopped off at a hotel for lunch, and only fish on the menu, so had a dish of potato cakes which consisted of 6 fritters.  Really nice though.

Then continued on my way.  So many Lochs and hills, and spectacular views.  A very long drive.

This is Loch Leven, which is a bit closer to Skye, another huge loch.










Finally arrived on the Isle of Skye, and Portree is almost in the middle.  By the time I arrived it was after 6 and not a B&B had any vacancies.  They're having an accordion and fiddle festival, as you do, and are all booked out.  Did find a hotel that had one room at  200 pounds, but declined.  It was well off the beaten track as I took another wrong turn, but the views were fantastic.

Finally decided to go towards Uig, don't ask how you pronounce it, will find out tomorrow.  Saw a little B&B along the road with about four other houses and nothing else, on the corner of another road to who knows where, and she had a room.  Have to share the bathroom but by this time, I was almost in tears I was so tired.  But the room is tiny but very clean and lovely sheets and curtains and the bathroom is modern.  Sharing it with the owner who is seems very nice.  The only concern is there is no lock on the door.  Free wifi though, but unsecured.

 This is the view from my room.  Wonderful.

Went back into Portree and had dinner at the Granary, mostly seafood, but they did have these lamb cutlets with potato scones.  Also haggish and black pudding but declined those.

This is my bedroom, there is another bed behind the door.  Very tastefully decorated, all wall pater which is slightly embossed.  The bathroom is very modern.

saw these cairns at a place along the way, I think before I got to Skye.










So await the next exciting edition of the Roamings or Ramblings of Rhon.

Finally in Scotland.

Well, were do I start..........................Dave and I had our last breakfast and took off for Spalding.  A little rain to start, but all went well.  Stopped at two service points along the way and had refreshments.

 Forgot to add Phil the Pheasant earlier.  He was found abandoned by his mum and Barry and Lucy tried to save him, but he only last three days.  Poor Phil.









Weather cleared and became quite warm. The Air-conditioning in the car didn't work, so became a little uncomfortable, but bearable. We arrived at the Jacobs' residence about 4.30pm.  Poor Dave was quite tired after all that driving.  All along motorways, but still tiring.

This one is for your Joan.  Thought you might be envious of all the drawers.

 this is one of dave's antiques, he has some lovely stuff, but lots of it.  Didn't take many pictures, but he asked why after I left.  Didn't want to be rude.

Here are some of his antiques.  The house is lovely inside.  Been fairly recently renovated as they have extended since they bought it 12 years ago.  Had pie, potatoes and peas for tea, and a fairly early night.

Then next morning, Dave and Les took the car back, and then I had breakfast and their mum and dad arrived for morning tea.  Did some washing as well last night so was trying to finish drying some of the pants.  Did a little research and then had some lovely crusty breadstick and nice cheese for lunch, sitting out in the sun, very pleasant.

More research and packing, and then left, we thought, but when we got to Peterborough which is 40 minutes away, there were renovations being done and only one ticket clerk, so by the time we got the ticket, the train was leaving on another platform.  I had also realized by this time I had left my jacket and wallet at home.

So back we went, I felt so awful, and the boys were so patient and polite.  By the time we got back, we changed the ticket fairly quickly.  I had to change at York for Edinburgh and then to Glascow.  No probs I thought.

 This is some rape which is grown every where, not just near Spalding, but everywhere, including Scotland and saw lots on the plane from Turku too.

Looks pretty, but quite a strong odour.  What we call canola.

           
  Also took this field of flax next to one of the fields of flax.

Anyway, back to the trip.  The train was only 15 minutes wait, so sent the boys home.  Boarded the train ok, but had probs with the baggage, and some nice man took it down to the baggage department for me, sideways.  Found a seat no probs, and off we took.  Till we got past Newark, Northgate.

Quite a nice station with lots of iron work.











Then, we had a massive hold up.  There had been a major signal and trains were lined up, just the Edinburgh train runs every half hour.  And there are other lines branching off.  Should have been in at 10 and arrived just
after midnight.  Had to change trains as York, but was able to use my computer from York to Edinburgh.  Was unsecured so didn't access the internet, but you did have 15 minutes free access.  Power for the computers too.  Makes our VicRail look sick, plus they all have cafe cars and a trolley that comes through.

As I had still to go one to Glascow, and others had to go onto other destinations, there were staff and taxis galore lined up and sorted very efficiently.  There were five of us in the taxi, two pull down seats, and luggage.  The other girl was only going to her hotel in Edinburgh but it was a very roundabout way to get there.

The other three men were to Linlithgow which is about half way to Glascow.  Then just Alex and I all the way to Glascow.  The cost was over 100 pounds, which we didn't pay of course.  But he said he would have to wait a few months to get paid.  He chatted away like nobody's business.  And gave me his phone number if every I get to Edinburgh again  :D

From the train between Glascow and Edinburgh, where I went today to do some research.  I think it may have been Falkirk, but can't remember.  Found out heaps at ScotlandsPeople,  I hope you are reading this Gwnne and Nin, so am going to Skye tomorrow and then work my way back to Falkirk and surrounding areas.  Had a wander around Glascow, just near here.  Am going to bed soon as it was after 2 when I got her last night or should I say morning, and then couldn't sleep.

 The bed is very comfortable though, and a choice of soft or firm pillows.

 From the door,

The bathroom.  Quite unusual in that the door to the toilet becomes the door to the whole bathroom, if you get my meaning.









Anyway, time for bed.  Goodnight all till the next episode.  Thanks for your interest.

Last Day in Cornwall.

A beautiful day to finish of a lovely week.  The family here are fabulous.  Everything is immaculate.  So friendly and hospitable.

Went into Truro again to the Historical Society.  To pick up the maps I had left behind.  Fancy that, me forgettting something  :D

Didn't find a lot, but the people there are so helpful.  At one stage only Dave and I were there and three staff and they were all searching for us.

Left after about two hours and had information overload.  Decided to go to the garden centre we had been before and bought a plant and card to give Barry and Lucy.  A clematis which they said they loved. 

 
Rather nice place, on the main road to Truro,  not sure how much.  Just a weekend cottage maybe!!

For sale, but don't know how much.

This is the rail bridge not far from our B&B.  The road to the house is narrow with hedgerows all along and lots of twists and turns.  Have occassionally met the odd tractor or two coming the other way, or a car, but fortunately not often.

 This was a handwashing drying machine in one of the public toilets.  Soap, water and dryer in one.  Different.

 On Sunday we had a touring day, so went to St. Mawes where Dave took some photos though I think he was a little disappointed in this castle.

 One the way home we came across this old fashioned sign post leading to Tresillian, where we are staying.

 The dining room here at Venton Berran.  Isn't it lovely, really a hardship to have breakfast here.

Tea on Saturday night at the Wheel Inn again, and thought I would have a small meal and ordered a jacket potato, don't think this was small and the ham was off the bone and lovely.

We saw this pub on the way home on Sunday so went there for tea Sunday and Monday night.  Sunday was roast beef and yorkshire pudding, but can't find the photo.  Was so tender.

 This is the owners dog.  Such a nice spaniel.  Very friendly.

Sorry photos are out of order.  Dessert, or what is left of it,. is a Manchester tart, which is shortcrust base, strawberry jam, Custard and coconut on top.

Light but nice.

 Sorry, I forgot to rotate the photo.  Started drinking non-alcoholic ginger beer.  Yum

 Dave had cod tonight, which he said was lovely.

 And I had pork mediallion with marachino cherry sauce and veg.  It was delicious.  This was an asked for small portion.

So folks that is Cornwall.  Leaving about 9am for Lincolnshire, to spend the night with Dave and Les, then in the arvo catch the train to Scotland.  So expect next up-date from Glascow.

Love to you all in Australia and in Finland.   <3<3